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T H E 



WHEAT PLANT: 




ITS ORIGIN, CULTURE, GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT, 

COMPOSITION, VARIETIES, DISEASES., 

ETC., ETC. 



TOGETHER WITH A FEW REMARKS ON 



INDIAN CORN, ITS CULTURE, ETC., 

»• 

BY JOHN H. KLIPPART, 

Corresponding; Secretary of the Ohio State Board of Agriculture; Member 

of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Cleveland; Honorary Member 

of Western Academy of Natural Sciences, Cincinnati, and 

Corresponding Secretary of Columbus 

Scientific Association. 



ONE HUNDRED ILLUSTRATIONS. 



NEW YORK: 

A. 0. MOORE & COMPANY, 

Agricultural Book Publishers. 
1860. 



b 



* 



K*& 



^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1859, 

BY MOORE, WILSTACH, KEYS & CO., 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 

District of Ohio. 



PREFACE. 



Several years ago I became aware of the fact that wheat — 
the staple crop of Ohio — was annually diminishing in its 
yield per acre ; that in less than fifty years the average pro- 
duct was reduced from thirty to less than fifteen bushels per 
acre. I also learned that, in Great Britain the yield had in- 
creased from sixteen bushels to thirty-six per acre during the 
same period. A knowledge of these facts induced me to 
investigate the subject of wheat culture, as well as the col- 
lateral subjects, in order to ascertain the cause of the decrease 
on the one hand, and the increase on the other, as well as to 
learn what remedy, if any, might readily be applied to restore 
our soils to their former productiveness. The result of this 
investigation is embodied in the present volume. 

I am not aware that any apology is necessary for introduc- 
ing this volume imperfect as it necessarily is, to the agricul- 
tural public. To me it has been a matter of surprise that no 
American has produced a treatise on the wheat plant ; and 
more than all that, even professional agricultural writers have 
been content to leave the " scattered fragments of thought" 
on so important a topic as the physiology, culture, varieties, 
diseases, etc., of the wheat plant dispersed through a 
multitude of journals or serial publications. That portion of 
the present volume published in the Ohio Agricultural Re- 
port, for 1857, caused the entire edition of 20,000 copies to 
be absorbed in less than sixty days from the date of publica- 
tion. The urgent solicitation of personal friends, in the cor- 
rectness of whose judgment I have the utmost confidence, 



IV PREPACK. 

again indicated to me a want, which I had previously seriously 
felt, of a work which should embrace all that is known rela- 
tive to the wheat plant. Such a work I have endeavored to 
produce ; and this work is now presented to the public with 
the assurance that there is no other work in the English 
language so complete on all subjects relating to this indis- 
pensable cereal. 

In Germany, Metzger, in the early part of this century, 
wrote a concise natural history of the European cereals ; in 
1836, Rev. F. W. Krause published an elegant and profusely 
illustrated work on German Wheats, Bye, Barley, and Oats ; 
and within the past ten years, a Mr. Kcenig published a small 
work on Cereals and German Forage Plants. 

John Le Couteur, some thirty years ago, published a work 
on wheat, in which most of the British varieties, which at that 
time were cultivated, are described. 

But these transatlantic works are of suggestive value only 
to American agriculturists, because not a single variety grown 
in England, Germany, or France, has been successfully intro- 
duced into the United States; and the system of culture 
practiced in those countries differs as widely as does the 

climate. 

The study of the wheat plant is the study of a lifetime. I 
have endeavored to trace the origin and history of this most 
important cereal, and it is much to be regretted that the origins 
of all the cereals are hidden under such an impenetrable veil. 
So far as the growth, the physiology of the plant is con- 
cerned, I have been careful either to verify every statement 
which is contained in this book, or else obtain it from such 
authority as to render verification unnecessary, excepting 
always the experiments of Salm Hortsmarr, which consisted 
entirely in growing plants in artificial inorganic soils,— those 
of Gilbert and Lawes, and those of Liebig. I had instituted 
a series of experiments similar to those of Sir Sidney Godol- 
phin Osborne, when, fortunately for me, his report to the 



PREFACE 



Microscopical Society of London came into my possession ; 
since which time nearly all of his experiments have been re- 
peated by me. In describing the growth of the wheat plant, I 
was necessarily obliged to discuss vegetable physiology, and 
notwithstanding this portion of the book may appear dull and 
uninteresting, and hypothetical only, yet it is one of the most 
important subjects to the agriculturist. 

On all doubtful points I have consulted the best author- 
ities to which I could obtain access, and have availed myself 
of the advantages offered by a constant and close attention 
to the best American, English, German, and French agricul- 
tural periodicals. No one can be more sensible than the 
writer, that much matter obtained from these sources has 
been too hastily digested for publication. 

The origin, composition, condition and management of soils 
naturally present themselves from many standpoints, in all 
of which it is necessary to discuss them ; so that from the 
very nature of the case it is impossible to prescribe on a 
single page the precise method to be pursued in any given 
case, as a physician would prescribe for the measles ; but it 
has been deemed more practical to examine the constituents 
of soils and plants, and the action of soils on plants, and that 
of plants on soils. Having thus stated the proposition, every- 
one will discover how far the examinations and results are 
applicable to his own estate. 

The descriptions of wheats in Ohio were obtained from 
prominent practical agriculturists throughout the State ; and 
the engravings of wheat heads were drawn from actual speci- 
mens now in the Cabinet in the State Agricultural Rooms. 

The descriptions of insects affecting the wheat plant were 
obtained from all accessible authentic sources, many of them, 
especially the engravings from Morton's Encyclopedia of 
Agriculture. To the best of my knowledge that portion 
relating to the diseases of the wheat plant, whether by vege- 
table or animal parasites is the most complete compilation 



VI PRE F ACE. 

accessible. There are many who, no doubt, desire greater 
simplicity of language, or freedom from technicalities or 
scientific terms. On that account I have endeavored to 
express every idea in as simple and concise a manner as 
possible ; at the same time scientific and technical terms are 
almost indispensable. 

Finally, if this work will induce our agriculturists to adopt 
an improved system of culture, so that the average product 
shall again attain its former maximum, the most sanguine 
wishes of myself, publisher and friends, will be fully realized. 

JOHN H. KLIPPART. 

State Agricultural Rooms, ) 
Columbus, 0., Sept. 10, 1859. j 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 
Preface 3 

Introduction 9 

CHAPTER I. 
General View of the Organic World 17 

CHAPTER II. 
Cereals and Grasses 36 

CHAPTER III. 
History of the Wheat Plant 59 

CHAPTER IV. 
Origin of the Wheat Plant 92 

CHAPTER V. 
Structure and Composition of the Wheat Grain , ... 107 

CHAPTER VI. 
Germination of the Wheat Plant 126 

CHAPTER VII. 
Origin and Constituents of Soils 153 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Nutrition of the Wheat Plant 176 

CHAPTER IX. 

Experiments of Salm Horstmarr on the growth of Plants in Inor- 
ganic Artificial Soils ; also, those of Weigmann and Polstorff. 210 

CHAPTER X. 
Experiments of Gilbert and Lawes 239 

7 



8 CONTENTS. 

Paok. 
CHAPTER XT. 

Growth of the Wheat Plant 266 

CHAPTER XII. 
Botanical Description of the Wheat Plant 280 

CHAPTER XIII. 
Wheat Regions of the World 290 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Culture of Wheat 330 

CHAPTER XV. 
Exhaustion of Soils „ 352 

CHAPTER XVI. 
Management of Soils 389 

CHAPTER XVII. 
Improvement of Soils 426 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
Description and Classification of Varieties of Wheat 479 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Wheats in Ohio 512 

CHAPTER XX. 
Diseases and Enemies of Wheat 557 

CHAPTER XXI. 

Animal Parasites affecting the Wheat Plant 592 

CHAPTER XXII. 
History of Corn 641 

Index 693 



THE 



WHEAT PLANT. 



It has frequently been asserted that the enactment of laws 
and the institution of schools were unmistakable evidences of 
civilization. True it is that these can exist only in societies 
that are not only civilized, but are also in a greater or less 
degree enlightened and refined ; but even many of the 
barbarous nations and savage hordes have laws of their 
own making, and many civilized communities were innocent 
of schools. 

But there is an evidence of civilization other than social 
institutions and mental development, an evidence grasped 
from Nature, and with her kind assistance, and fostering care, 
perpetuated by civilized man only. 

That true and unequivocal symbol of civilization, and 

consequent enlightenment and refinement is, the wheat 

plant. As truly as did flocks of sheep in the primitive ages 

lead the shepherds to the threshold, of that truly magnificent 

science, Astronomy, just so certainly did the wheat plant in 

yet earlier ages induce man to forget his savageism, abandon his 

nomadic life, to invent and cultivate peaceful arts, and lead a 

rural and, consequently, peaceful life. There is not on the vast 

expanse of the face of the globe a savage, barbarous, or semi- 

(ix) 



X INTRODUCTION. 

civilized nation that cultivates the wheat plant. In the set- 
tlement of New England, the Indians called the plantain the 
" Englishman's foot," and in the infancy of society wheat 
may have been similarly regarded as springing from the foot- 
steps of the Persians or Egyptians. Our Aborigines fully 
appreciated the influence of the wheat plant on society, if the 
following anecdote, related by Orevecceur, the old French tra- 
veler, has any foundation in fact : The chief of the tribe of 
the Mississais said to his people, " Do you not see the whites 
living upon seeds, while we eat flesh? That flesh requires 
more than thirty moons to grow up, and is then often scarce. 
That each of the wonderful seeds they sow in the earth re- 
turns them an hundred fold. The flesh on which we subsist 
has four legs to escape from us, while we have but two to pur- 
sue and capture it. The grain remains where the white men 
sow it, and grows. With them winter is a period of rest, 
while with us it is the time of laborious hunting. For these 
reasons they have so many children, and live longer than we 
do. I say, therefore, unto every one that will hear me, that 
before the cedars of our village shall have died down with age, 
and the maple trees of the valley shall have ceased to give us 
sugar, the race of the little corn (wheat) sowers will have ex- 
terminated the race of the flesh-eaters, provided their hunts- 
men do not resolve to become sowers." 

The ancients, who had burst the bonds of savageism, and 
scarcely more than escaped from the confines of barbarism, 
and through the magic influence of the fruit of the wheat 
stalk barely reached the threshold of civilization, retained a 
grateful memory of the plant, which was the prime cause of 
their amelioration; they erected temples and instituted an ap- 
propriate rite for the worship of the goddess Ceres, who was 



INTRODUCTION. xi 

by them regarded not only as the patron goddess of the crops, 
but the propitiator of sound morals, and the promoter of 
peace and peaceful avocations. 

In their traditions of the wars of the giants, the ancient 
Germans have a legend, the purport of which is, that Thor, 
the agriculturist, obtained possession of the soil from Winter, 
who had depressed, brutalized, scattered, and destroyed the 
inhabitants with his chilling blasts and storms of sleet and 
snow, and drenching showers of rain, upon condition that he 
would introduce harmony, peace and fellowship into social 
life by the culture of straw-producing plants. 

The culture of the wheat-bearing plant compelled the cul- 
tivator to abandon the wild or nomadic life which it is not 
unreasonable to suppose he must have led, and the time which 
otherwise would have been spent in roaming through the 
forests, was now spent in contriving indispensable imple- 
ments ; first and prominent among these were the plow and 
harrow — rude beyond question in mechanical structure, and 
uncouth in appearance, yet they were the first peaceful, and 
at the same time utilitarian products of civilization. 

These implements compelled man to employ the physical 
strength of animals, which have ever since been his constant 
companions. First, the ox was domesticated, and to labor 
under the yoke became his daily task ; next, the horse, that 
noblest of quadrupeds, was not only tamed and taught to come 
at the call of his master in the morning, but to endure the 
heat and fatigues of the day. Thus, a great work accom- 
plished, and the second great step taken toward ultimate 
civilization, as well as the superiority of man over the beast 
and brute fully established when the sheep, the ox, the cow, 
and the horse retired together to rest at twilight in the rude 



Xll INTRODUCTION. 

shed, or open field, and the faithful watch-dog sought his ac- 
customed post as sentry. 

Thus has the culture of this straw-growing plant caused 
savages to abandon their barbarous customs — has fixed in 
friendly communion many nomadic and rival hordes — inaugu- 
rated the greatest era the world ever saw, the era from which 
the human race may date its incipient civilization, the era of 
labor. The continued culture and increase of this plant has 
from the very commencement called into action all the re- 
sources of civilized nations. After the invention of the plow 
and harrow, man's inventive genius was tasked to produce a 
reaping hook or sickle, and successively during the many ages 
of the historic period has this plant called into existence the 
scythe, the grain cradle, winnowing machine, sowing machine, 
thrashing machine, and within our own day and generation, 
the reaping machine. The prolificacy of this plant has brought 
into existence the cart and the wagon in the earlier ages of 
society, but in more recent ones it has demanded the construc- 
tion of turnpikes, and macadamized roads through the pathless 
wilderness ; that canals be dug to unite the waters which flow 
to the Northward with those which flow to the equator ; that 
boats be constructed, and ships with wide-spreading canvas 
were found to be indispensable ; and lastly, the steamboat, 
steamship, railroad and steam flouring-mill were as loudly and 
as earnestly demanded in our day as was the rude plow in the 
first days of civilization. 

There is not in the entire catalogue of plants another one 
which has been as instrumental in the development of me- 
chanical ingenuity, and the intellectual faculties, as has been, 
and is, the wheat plant. It is true that fiber-producing plants 
and prominently among these flax and cotton, have exercised 



INTRODUCTION. xiii 

considerable influence in the development of mechanical in- 
ventions, but upon strict examination it will be found that very- 
many of the principles of mechanical structures and combina- 
tions of powers had already been called into requisition by 
the fiber produced by the sheep, and the thread produced by 
the silk-worm. 

In countries where the agricultural art, or rather the cul- 
ture of the wheat plant, has fallen into disuse, there has civ- 
ilization also retrograded ; and were it not for commerce with 
enlightened and refined nations, several countries would 
speedily relapse into all the horrors of absolute barbarism. 
Were the wheat plant " blotted out of existence," society 
would of necessity revert to its original state. In vain would 
the miner delve in the bowels of the earth to bring forth the 
dark and heavy ore to make iron ; no iron would be wrought 
because there would be no use for plows, and consequently 
no use for the thousand mechanical contrivances for sowing, 
harvesting, thrashing, cleaning, transporting and grinding 
wheat. Is it not astonishing to reflect on the number of per- 
sons engaged in the culture of the plant, the number engaged 
in constructing and improving machinery to gather and pre- 
pare the seed, the number engaged in transporting the grain 
from place to place, as well the number engaged in the manu- 
facture of flour, and the preparation of bread. Truly is not 
the wheat the plant, the corner-stone of civilization, and 
would not the destruction of it overwhelm society with dark- 
ness blacker than the storm cloud at midnight. Does the 
extreme cold of winter destroy the germ of the stalk in the 
plant — have the rains been too frequent and too abundant — 
or has a pitiless and heartless hail-storm leveled it to the 
earth ; then how many are the thousands to whom is brought 



XIV INTRODUCTION. 

suffering, and sorrow, and hunger. In the grave of the past 
are buried revolts and insurrections, wild as hordes of savases 
in their demonstrations, and terrible in their course as the 
lava current bursting from the bowels of the earth, which 
have been the lamentable results of an unpropitious season or 
seasons, in which the straw of the wheat plant failed to attain 
a proper maturity and perform its natural functions. Brute 
force has been called into requisition, plunder and even mur- 
der has been committed by the sufferers, who know no law 
other than necessity, when the cereals fail. 

While the hands of industry are busily employed in secur- 
ing the product yielded by the wheat plant, every one is 
eagerly and earnestly shaping his demand for a pro rata of 
the results. This one has closeted himself, and buried him- 
self in the study of law ; that one has seized the pencil or the 
chisel ; another has taken to the jack-plane ; a fourth has 
mounted the fearful locomotive ; a fifth has entrusted himself 
to the treacherous waves of the briny deep ; a sixth has 
picked up the sledge, whose uses were taught to mankind by 
Vulcan, and from sun to sun strikes the patient anvil ; all, all 
having a single and identical object in view, namely, that of 
exchanging the fruits of their labors for the fruits of the wheat 
plant; thus is the action of society kept in a continual round 
of exchange like a bark on a sluggish eddy, forever departing 
from the shore only to be forever arriving at it, and forever 
arriving only to be forever departing. The pearl-fisher diver 
fearlessly into the fathomless deeps of the ocean for the ani- 
mal product found among the rocky polyp -trees ; the miner 
excavates the subterranean shaft for gold, the artists produce 
articles of the most exquisite workmanship, and like a beast 
of burden the porter tenders the services of his physical 



INTRODUCTION. XV 

strength in order to obtain a proportion of the products of the 
wheat plant. All that we see or hear, all that is done, all that 
is spoken, written or thought, is performed directly or indi- 
rectly on account of the fruit of that plant, which introduced, 
developed, and to-day maintains civilization. 

It may be said tha$ this is claiming too much for a cereal 
whose origin has scarcely ceased to be a matter of controversy. 
With a map of the world before you, point, if you can, to the 
country or nation enjoying civilization and enlightenment, 
that does not cultivate the cereals, or point to a country or a 
nation in a state of savageism or barbarism that does culti- 
vate the wheat plant ; then reflect for a moment on the num- 
ber of persons in our country whose occupation would be 
gone ; how many millions of capital would have been uselessly 
invested, how many machines and implements would be left 
to decay in inglorious idleness, and how much calamity, moral, 
political and social would ensue, were the wheat plant to be 
suddenly and universally annihilated. 



A TREATISE 



ON THE 



ORIGIN, GROWTH, DISEASES, VARIETIES, ETC., OF 
THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER I. 

GENERAL VIEW OF THE ORGANIC WORLD. 

As barbarism and ignorance gave place to civilization and 
enlightenment, new fields of investigation, and consequently 
new sources of enjoyment presented themselves, and attracted 
the attention of the learned in all ages. Prominently among 
the most interesting of these fields of research and investiga- 
tion> were natural phenomena, and at a very early period in 
the history of mankind do we find great attention paid them. 
From the many ferocious, and at that time uncontrollable wild 
beasts, the study of the animal kingdom engaged the attention 
of the learned. In the ages of greater comparative refinement 
in the history of civilization, we find the greatest attention 
bestowed on the vegetable kingdom ; it has attracted the 
attention of all classes ; as much, perhaps, from the beautiful, 
variously tinted and fragrant flowers with which it fascinates, 
as from the more substantial elements of food which it 
furnishes. 

In the enlightened, or present scientific age — l.he age of 
scrutinous investigation — the age in which the microscope 
has revealed to us the wonders of the miniature world, as did 
the telescope, in a former age, the Planetary world — the age 

2 (17) 



18 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

which, when future historians record its events, may truth- 
fully say, that during this period, every organic and inorganic 
substance within the reach of man was submitted to chemical 
analysis, and the elements composing them determined even 
in almost infinitesimal detail — this age was the first to devote 
any special attention to the mineral kingdom. 

Among the various and manifestly distinct races of animals, 
naturalists observed that many analogous characteristics ex- 
isted between individuals, which evidently were the offspring 
of separate and widely distinct progenitors. A very strong 
resemblance in external conformation — the structure of the 
hoof as well as the shape of it — the tail — head — hair or cov- 
ering, etc., were observed in the Horse, Ass, Zebra, and Quag- 
ga. Because of this resemblance, naturalists at a very early 
day placed all these animals just mentioned into one group, 
and called it the Horse group, or genera, and every animal 
belonging to this group is said to be of the Horse kind or 
genus. The Lion, Tiger, Leopard, Cat, and other animals 
with long stiff hairs on the upper lip — the foot divided into 
toes, and that crouch and spring npon their prey, are said to 
be of the Cat kind, or genus. In this manner have natural- 
ists arranged in groups all the known animals in the world. 
The groups like the Horse group or Cat group are named 
(xenera, and the individual varieties or kinds composing the 
o-roup are named species. In cases where several genera have 
analogous characteristics, they form a grand group which is 
named Order or Family; then analogous Orders are arranged 
into Classes. 

In the vegetable kingdom a similar arrangement into classes, 
orders, genera and species has obtained, founded, however, on 
qualities and characteristics differing in kind only from those 
of the animal kingdom. Botanists make two grand divisions 
of the entire vegetable kingdom : — the one is composed of all 
the flowering or Phsenogamous plants, and the other of the 
flowerless or Cryptogamous ones. The flowers of the flowering 



VEGETABLE AND MINERAL KINGDOMS. 19 

plants serve as the basis of a system of classification into 
genera and species. No one who has observed can fail to 
notice the great similarity that is presented by the flowers of 
the radish, cabbage, mustard, turnip, candy-tuft, pepper-grass, 
and horse-radish ; all these and many more are called the 
Turnip Family, or Cruciferje. Not only is there a great 
resemblance between the flowers of the pea, the bean, vetch 
and lupine, but the fruit of each of these is encased in a sim- 
ilar pod or legume ; hence these plants are by botanists placed 
in the same group, and called the Pea Family, or Leguminosae. 
In a similar manner have all the known plants been classified 
by Linnaeus, and other botanists. 

The vegetable kingdom is further divided, or rather subdi- 
vided into Exogens and Endogens, or those plants which 
increase by annual layers between the bark and heart wood, 
as the oak, hickory, etc., and those which do not so increase, 
as the Indian corn, wheat, oats, etc. These two divisions are 
further subdivided into Monocotyledonous, or plants whose seed 
is an entirely solid mass, as a grain of wheat, rye, or corn ; 
and Dicotyledonous, or plants whose seed are composed of two 
portions, as the bean, acorn, chestnut, etc. 

So, also, has the mineral kingdom been analyzed and classi- 
fied ; the distinguishing feature of the groups being a pre- 
dominance of a certain mineral, metal or earth in the compo- 
sition of any individual of the group. Alabaster, Plaster of 
Paris, Epsom Salts, Satin Spar, Marl, etc., belong to the Lime 
Family, because lime predominates in their composition ; the 
Topaz, Ruby, Emerald and Alum are arranged under the 
head of Alumina, on account of the predominance of the last 
named mineral in the composition ; and Quartz, Agate, Jas- 
per, Amethyst, Sand- and Onyx under that of Silica, because 
Flint is the basis of these gems. 

It is now claimed by one party of theorists, that including 
the fossils of the animal and vegetable kingdoms, there may 
be traced a series of progressive forms of development, com- 



20 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

mencing with the simplest crystal on the one hand, and be- 
coming thenceforward not only more complex, but more 
highly organized as the series progresses, till man is produced, 
who at once is the most complex, most highly organized, and 
the crown of the series of organic creations. The reader is 
respectfully referred to a work entitled the " Vestiges op 
Creation," for a full exposition of this singular theory. 

Geology and Palaeontology teach us to regard our planet as 
a body subject to changes not dissimilar to youth, manhood 
and age — subject to an almost organic system of development. 
In this respect there appears to be somewhat of a parallel be- 
tween organic and inorganic worlds. The inorganic was first 
in p\)int of time — organic existence could necessarily take 
place only after the inorganic was created. In tracing the 
progress of development of organized matter, we are led to 
conclude that primitive vegetation was at all events aquatic, 
if not actually marine ; but in process of time there were dis- 
tinct land, as well as distinct water or aquatic plants. The 
remains of plants, which we find in the lowest series of rocks 
containing fossils, are therefore the earliest types of the vege- 
table kingdom, and strange to say, from the very limited 
number of plants found fossil in comparison to those now in 
existence, the fossil ones present the chief types of the pres- 
ent vegetable kingdom — the monocotyledons only are wanting. 
In the fossil coal we find faint indications of them; but in 
the subsequent Geological periods, the New Red Sandstone for 
example, we find a plant belonging to the class of Restiacece — 
a class allied to the Rushes — Mr. Brogniart has named this 
plant Polceoxyris regularis. In the Kemper formation we find 
a plant Polseoxyris Munsteri, which greatly resembles the 
former one. 

It is in the Lias, however, that we find the first true grasses : 
Poacites Arundo, Paspalum and Nardus ; of the Cyperaceae 
or sedges, we find cyperites scirpoides, caricinus, and typhoides. 

In the Miocene formation we find Culmites anomalus, 



PRE-ADAMITE PLANTS. 21 

Brogn., and C. Grdpperti, and Banihusum Sepultum, Ung. ; and 
finally, in the Pliocene, we find Culmites arundinaceus, Uhg., 
and Cyperites tertiarius, Ung. 

The limited number of the above exceedingly rare species 
■which have been found, are undoubtedly but a mere fraction 
only of the species which existed during those respective 
periods of the earth's history. 

What a singular history could be written did we know all 
the genera and species of plants which existed during the 
entire pre-Adamite history of the globe ! Possessed of this 
knowledge, we would be able to trace with certainty the his- 
tory of each particular species ; indicate in an unerring man- 
ner the nativity of each plant, and classify with greater 
precision. 

But we know sufficiently of the order of creation as indi- 
cated in the rock formations of the earth, to feel certain that 
the primitive plants were of the Algae tribe ; then followed the 
Ferns, sigillariae, asterophyllae ; then succeeding them came 
coniferae and cycadae ; while in our time the dicotyledonous 
plants preponderate. 

There is a singular order of development in the vegetable 
kingdom viewed as a whole, those of a simpler organization 
appearing first, and the more complex ones appearing at a 
later period. Among the monocotyledons the grasses at pres- 
ent predominate, while the compositae present the greatest 
number of species of dicotyledonous plants. There is good 
reason to infer from this fact, that the several families of 
plants did not and do not exist independent of each other 
without a specific purpose, and that the entire vegetable world 
is an unit, and its development in the different periods of cre- 
ation is in accordance with an immutable law — the vegetation 
of the various epochs have a certain relation and connection 
with each other. 

Prof. Unger has elaborated a beautiful hypothesis with re- 
lation to the vegetable world, in which he compares the exist- 



22 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ence of a species with that of an individual plant. Even as 
an individual plant has a period of commencement, a period 
of perfect development, as well as a period of decay ; so, also, 
does a species have a period of commencement, a point of cul- 
mination in development, and a period of termination. Thus 
far we may adopt, with perfect security, the theory advanced 
by Prof. Unger, because it is corroborated by researches in 
palaeontology or fossil geology ; but, when he asserts that 
11 the plant is subject to a period when it may produce a new 
species, similar to the impregnation and development of seed 
in a single individual," it is best to hold assent in abeyance. 

It is by no means difficult to demonstrate where the miner- 
al kingdom terminates, and the vegetable or animal kingdom 
commences, because the transition from inorganic to organic 
forms must necessarily be very abrupt ; but naturalists assert 
that it is an exceedingly difficult task to draw the line of de- 
markation between the vegetable and animal kingdoms. Many 
species of Radiata or the lowest types of the animal kingdom 
are now classed as Anthozoa, especially the campanidaria and 
alcyonium, and more recently the entire class of Porifera or 
Sponges have been regarded as belonging to the vegetable 
kingdom. If the series of progression are as regular and as 
perfect as theorists assert, then must all the intermediate links 
between any specified points in the series also be perfect ; and. 
upon this hypothesis of perfection in the series it is claimed 
that nature endeavors to prevent the propagation of mules or 
hybrids, in the animal kingdom, by regarding them as excres- 
cences, and withholding from the reproductive organs the per- 
formance of their proper functions. 

In the vegetable kingdom, although there is considerable 
conflict between the different systems of classification, so far 
as genera and species are concerned, yet, as a whole, it is 
claimed that there exists as perfect a chain of progressive de- 
velopment as in the animal ; — from the simple cell of the Red 
Snow or Protococcus up to the most elegantly and highly or- 



CHANGES IN FORMS OF PLANTS. 23 

ganized Phrenoganiia. Hence it is confidently asserted, that 
although the vitality in plants is very distinct from, and lower 
in the scale of organization than that of the animal kingdom ; 
and although in their most highly organized forms, plants are 
susceptible of being wrought upon and greatly changed by 
man's interference, such as inarching, budding, and grafting 
not only different varieties of the same species upon each 
other, but upon widely different species themselves, have these 
operations proved successful ; yet, notwithstanding the tenacity 
of life in the lowest orders of the animal kingdom, success 
has never crowned any experiments where different species 
have been attempted to be grafted upon each other, although 
polyps of the same species have been engrafted on each other. * 
Much has been accomplished as man has become more famil- 
iar with the laws of nature, but more especially with physio- 
logical laws, in the improvement and more perfect develop- 
ment of individuals, by special care and attention to the 
natural wants and habits of plants and animals, and by modi- 
fying conditions of temperature, climate and nutriment, in 

* If the head of a polyp, with all its tentacles, be cut off from the 
trunk with scissors, it will presently develop a new trunk and base, 
while the headless trunk begins to shoot out new tentacles ; and thus, 
in a little time, two perfect animals are formed. If one of these be cut 
in three, four, or half a dozen pieces, each piece supplies the wanting 
part?, and so many animals are made, all as perfect and active, and en- 
dowed with the same functions as the first. Nor does it signify in what 
direction the mutilation is made ; a longitudinal, a diagonal, or a trans- 
verse division is equally successful; nay, even a small portion of the 
skin soon grows into a polyp. It was from this power of perpetual re- 
production that this singular animal received the name of Hydra, by 
which it is known among naturalists; as if it realized the ancient mon- 
ster of fabulous story, whose heads sprouted anew as fast they were cut 
oil' by Hercules. 

Most curious monstrosities were produced by the experiments of philoso- 
pher on these animals, especially by partial separations. If a polyp be slit 
trom the summit to the middle, one will be formed having two heads, eacli 



24 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

accordance with the laws governing the respective kingdoms. 
In the natural state the ox measures in girth from five to six 
feet, and weighs from ten to twelve hundred pounds ; but, 
by attention and conformity to physiological laws he has been 
so improved (?) as to measure from nine to ten feet in girth, 
and to weigh upward of three thousand pounds. By a 
strict adherence and obedience of these laws, certain desirable 
characteristics have been obtained and perpetuated, insomuch 
that these qualities obtained by cultivation have given rise 
to artificial varieties in the horse, ox, sheep and hog. The 
fleetest racer, as "Flora Temple' 1 or " Lady Suffolk" as well 
as the heavy and uncouth Norman draft horse, may trace its 
parentage through many lapses of time, perhaps, and countries, 
until it centers in one and the same progenitor ; but they owe 
their distinctness and modification of form to climate, care and 
conformation, to natural and physiological laws. So the Short- 
horns, Longhorns, Herefords, Devons, etc., are undoubtedly 
the offspring of one and the identical progenitor ; but cli- 
mate, locality, and attention have modified and molded them 
into remarkably distinct artificial varieties. 

There is no difficulty in proving that the original Saxony 
sheep was a very coarse-wooled and uncouthly formed animal, 
and now owes its present fineness of wool entirely to man's 
agency ; and to the same cause are due the various qualities 
of wool and artificial varieties of sheep. The China, Berk- 

of which will capture and swallow food. If these again be slit half a doz- 
en times, as many heads will be formed surmounting the same body. If 
now all of these be cut off, as many new ones will spring up in their 
place, while each of the severed heads becomes a new polyp, capable of 
being in its turn, varied and multiplied ad infinitum, — so that in every re- 
spect our little reality exceeds its fabulous namesake. Polyps may be 
grafted together. If cut off pieces be placed in contact, and pushed to- 
gether with a gentle force, they will unite and form a single one. The 
head of one may thus be placed on the trunk of another. — Life; by 
P. II Gosse. 



MULES AND HYBRIDS. 25 

shire, Essex, Suffolk, Grass Breed and other varieties of the 
hog, owe their peculiarities to man's instrumentality, and are un- 
doubtedly the modified offspring of one common pair of 
parents. 

The improvements above named may with great propriety be 
termed " developments" for there is no doubt each individual in 
the animal kingdom above mentioned was innately susceptible 
of these improvements, and all that was necessary to make 
them manifest was to be surrounded by the proper condition 
and influences. 

But man has, in some instances, endeavored to make an im- 
provement in another direction. He observed that the pro- 
duct of the symmetric thorough-bred horse upon the massive 
draught or Norman horse, was an animal less symmetric than 
the one, yet lighter than the other ; slower than the one, yet 
fleeter than the other ; in a word, the characteristics of both 
were blended and united in this offspring. This new animal 
then became the progenitor of a new sub-variety of horses. 
Finding that the cross thus produced realized the most san- 
guine anticipations, a cross was determined on between the 
horse and the ass, the result was the mule ; but it could not 
propagate its species. In the many attempted improvements 
by crossing, the following law was discovered : That a cross 
between two individuals of the same species, although of dif- 
ferent varieties, is a mongrel, partaking of the form and 
characteristics of both progenitors, and is capable of repro- 
duction, as in the case of the cross of the turf and draft horse 
just stated ; but the product of two animals of different species 
or zoologic circles is a mule, partaking in a greater or less 
degree of the paternal or maternal type, but entirely deprived 
of reproductive powers. 

In the vegetable kingdom the results are precisely analo- 
gous to those in the animal. The individual plants which 
participated in the crossing may be distinctly traced in the 
hybrid. The varieties obtained by crossing affiliated plants or 



26 THE AVIIEAT PLANT. 

flowers produce fruits which have fecundating powers, 
familiar instances of which may be found in corn, portu- 
laccas, convolvulus or morning-glory; while the hybrids 
or crosses produced by the artificial impregnation of flow- 
ers produce no fruit, or at most, if fruit is produced, 
the seeds are sterile. Flowers appear to possess a much 
stronger attraction for the pollen or fecundating property 
of the male portion of the plant, of their own varieties, 
than for that of different species; hence, in order to be 
successful in hybridizing, it is not only very essential that a 
large quantity of the pollen be employed, but it is also 
necessary that the flowers be closely allied ; crosses 
between individuals of different genera, or different species 
although of the same genera, produce no result. It is also 
useless to attempt to produce crosses with those plants whose 
seeds never mature in this climate. 

It may not, in this place, be irrelevant to say a few words 
in detail of the hybridization of plants. The earliest record 
we can find of hybrids is in the writings of Carnerarius, in 
1694. Linnaeus wrote his u Diss- r tat ion de plantis Ilyhrulis ; ' 
in 1751, and eight years later Kolreuter commenced 
and succeeded in producing hybrids by artificial fecun- 
dation : from this last named period to the present time 
numberless species and genera of plants have been submitted 
to the process of hybridization, which in itself is exceedingly 
simple. 

This process consists in bringing the pollen which is con- 
tained in the anthers of the one flower into contact with the 
stigma of the pistil of the flower intended to be impregnated. 

As the parts of plants will frequently be referred to in the 
course of the work, it will not, in this place, be very inappro- 
priate to explain the process of hybridization, as well as the 
parts or anatomy of flowers. 

Fig. 1 represents a glume or husk of wheat, magnified six 
diameters, containing the male and female parts of the flower 
in their natural although immature positions. Fig. 2 repre- 



ANATOMY OP SEXUAL APPARATUS. 



27 




Fig. L* 



sents a glume magnified twelve diameters, and in a 
more advanced stage, d is the ovule, or unimpreg- 
nated seed or body destined to become a seed; or, 
perhaps, more properly, the young wheat grain, e e 
the pistils, or female part of the flower. Many 
flowers, as the convolvulus or morning-glory, have 
one pistil only ; the family of grasses to which wheat 
belongs has, as a general thing, two pistils ; the com- 
mon elder, sumach, etc., three ; the elatine, or water- 
wort, four, etc., etc. The pistils are always in the 
center of the flower, and are attached or surmounted on the 
ovule or ovary, to which they serve as ducts for the pollen 
grains, ace are anthers, or the male part of the flower, and 
contain pollen grains, which latter contain a fluid that im- 
pregnates or fecundates the ovule ; that 
portion marked b is termed filament or 
thread, from its thread-like form, and 
connects the anther to the ovule or 
glume, as the case may be. The entire 
organ a b is called a Stamen. 

When the anthers arrive at a, Fig. 
or c, Fig. 2, they become ruptured, and 
shed the pollen grains upon the pistils of 
the glume which they are leaving ; but 
do not shed their pollen upon other 
glumes after they have escaped from the 
parent glume, as has erroneously been 
asserted. One anther only escapes at a «/ 
time. Figs 3, 1, and 2, were drawn from 
nature ; 1 represents the interior condi- 
tion of the glume at the proper time for 
hybridizing, i e., before its own anthers FlG - 2 t 




• Fig. 1. Glume of wheat exhibiting pistils and anthers in situ. 

|Fig. 2. Glume of wheat in bloom, magnified twelve diameters, 
and in a move advanced stage, a. Ruptured anther, b. b. Filaments. 
c. c. Anthers not yet extruded, d. Ovarium, or young Grain of wheat. 
e. Pistil. /./. Glume. 



28 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



have shed their pollen. Fig. 2 exhibits the glume after one 
anther (a) has escaped, and another (c) partially extruded, 
while Fig. 3 represents the two anthers as having escaped 






Fio. 39. 



Fia. 40. 



Fig 41. 



and emitted their pollen, while a is partially extruded. 
Hence, since one anther only escapes at a time, it would be 
impossible for the anthers of one glume to fecundate the 
germs in a neighboring glume ; except, indeed, it be demon- 
strated that the sides of the glume remain apart for such 
purpose. Those who may be disposed to take the pains to 
examine will find that the sides of the glumes are in such 
exceedingly close proximity as to exclude even the finest par- 
ticles from entering. The exit of the anthers always takes 



* Fig. 3. Glume of wheat exhibiting the sexual apparatus of the flower. 
a. Anther partially ruptured and extruded, b. Anthers entirely ex- 
truded and ruptured, e. Filaments, d. Ovarium, c. Anthers as they 
appear before extrusion commences, JgggfThe pistils are removed in 
this figure, to avoid confusion. 

|Fig. 4. A portion of the pistil highly magnified. /././. Pollen 
grains. 

X Ftg. 5. A small portion of the pistil very highly magnified, b. c. 
Portion of Pistil, a. Main cavity or duct leading from extremity of 
pistil to ovarium, d. A pollen grain penetrating a branch of the main 
duct. 



IMPREGNATION OF PLANTS. 29 

place at the upper portion of the glumes, so that the pollen, 
by its own gravity, falls directly upon the pistils. 

After a pollen grain has fallen among the tufted portion of 
the pistil, as at /, Fig. 4 (which represent a portion of the 
pistil, e, Fig. 2, highly magnified), it soon becomes exceed- 
ingly plastic. The pistil as well as the pollen grain is covered 
with an exceedingly thin coat of mucilaginous matter, 
which causes them to adhere when once in contact. The fim- 
bria of the pistil contain ducts through which the pollen 
grain finds its way until it reaches the ovule, where it finds 
bodies having a greater affinity for its contents, which are 
soon commingled with the surrounding parts. Fig. 5 repre- 
sents a portion of the pistil very highly magnified, with a 
pollen grain, d, penetrating a branch of the main duct, a. 

There are certain conditions, however, which must be strict- 
ly observed, otherwise there can be no successful impregna- 
tion : the flowers with which it is proposed to operate, must 
have obtained the same degree of advancement, because 
impregnation can not be effected on others than those flowers 
which expand or bloom at about the same time. The pollen 
grains are a very fine dust contained in a very delicate envelop 
in the anther of a stamen — the color of the pollen varies 
with the species, but as a general thing is of a pale yellow 
tint — those of the morning-glory are of a pearly white, while 
those of the cucumber family are a deep yellow. Each pollen 
grain contains, within an exceedingly delicate, transparent 
membrane, a mucilaginous material, which is inodorous, and is 
the fecundating substance of the male organ. The pistil 
ordinarily has a small spongelet surrounding the center of the 
style, called the stigma, which is lubricated by a serous liquid, 
which has in an eminent degree the power of absorption. If, 
upon the extremity of this stigma, a small drop of colored 
liquid — for example, in the morning-glory the pistil is white, 
use a liquid colored with carmine — the absorbing powers man- 
ifest themselves very strikingly, for the style will be colored 
down to its base. Now the passage which thus becomes 



30 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

colored, is the duct which the pollen enters and traverses in 
the phenomenon of fecundation. 

When it is desired to obtain a hybrid from hermaphrodite 
flowers, the first thing to be done is to remove the anthers ; 
this is best performed early in the morning, because the dew 
has swollen the anthers and prevents the opening of the little 
sac, which contains the pollen ; the simplest method of 
removing the anthers is to use a pair of very small scissors 
or forceps. Then at, or toward noon, carefully remove the 
anthers from the flower with whose pollen we wish to impreg- 
nate, and shake them gently so that the pollen dust may fall 
upon and adhere to the stigma of the flower from which the 
anthers had been removed in the morning. The heat of the 
day produces a dilatation of the pollen, and thus facilitates 
its dispersion. 

In order, then, to hybridize, it is necessary to take the 
heads of wheat which are intended to be the parents, both male 
and female, when they have arrived at that state of maturity 
indicated by Fig. 1, or before any of the anthers have escaped 
from the glume. Suppose a cross is intended to be consum- 
mated between the Genessee Flint, as male, and White Blue 
Stem, as female. Then, on a dry and warm day — this state 
of weather seems to be necessary, as at such times impregna- 
tion not only more readily takes place, but appears to be more 
successful — between 10 and 12 o'clock, hold the head of the 
Blue Stem downward, and carefully open the glumes ; then 
with a very sharp pointed scissors, cut off the anthers (ace, 
Fig. 2), and let them fall to the ground ; great care must be 
taken that no anther is permitted to touch the pistil of the 
same head, either before or after separation of the filaments 
(b b, Fig. 2); this is perhaps the most delicate part of the ope- 
ration. After the anthers have been removed, pollen-grains 
from the anthers of the Genessee Flint must be immediately 
applied to the pistil of the glumes from which the anthers 
have been removed. 

In order to preserve the heads thus impregnated, from 



d. j. browne's view of impregnation. 31 

injury by insects or birds, they may be enveloped in a hood of 
gauze, or Swiss muslin, but no caution whatever, is necessary 
to guard against the accidental introduction of pollen-grains, 
as Mr. D. J. Browne intimates in the Patent Office Report 
for 1855, page 184, viz : 

M The three males are designed to impregnate the stigma of 
the one female, or pistil, which is situated in the center of the 
anthers. From these anthers, a powder, or pollen, is emitted, 
which adheres to, or is absorbed by, the stignia, and is con- 
veyed by it down to the berry, or seed, at its base, and thus 
effects the work of fecundation. So decided is the preference 
of the pistil for the pollen of its own stamens, that it is often 
impossible to impregnate it with that of any other head, 
while a particle of this is near. Impregnation takes place 
best when the weather is dry and warm, as a peculiar warmth, 
and a certain electric state of the atmosphere prepare the 
parts for this process, which always occurs on a dry day. 
The opinion, indeed, has been expressed, that the pollen of 
the male conveys hydrogen to the ovules of the female, that 
oxygen is received from the atmosphere, and carbon, in the 
form of carbonic acid gas, from the roots ; and that, w 7 hen the 
pollen is destroyed by the rain, or from any other cause, the 
carbon alone is found in the ear, and this is the well known 
'smut' in wheat. That pollen of the stamen is essential to 
impregnation is at least certain ; and it is almost as certain, 
from what has been stated, that the total destruction of the 
reproductive power of a particular race of wheat must be 
effected, before" the influence of another can be felt. Two 
races being placed together, therefore, a cross can only be cer- 
tainly effected by clipping the anthers from all the stamens of 
one variety, and leaving the work of impregnation to be 
effected by those of the other exclusively. This may be done 
by any person capable of distinguishing between the two 
races ; but, perhaps, the safer guide to this distinction con- 
sists in sowing the two in separate drills, very near each other 
say nine or ten inches apart; and, to render the work still 



32 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

more sure, there should be no other growing wheat within at 
least a quarter of a mile of that experimented upon, the affin- 
ity between the pollen and the ovules being of almost incredible 
force. A series of experiments can only be made, therefore, 
by the co-operation of several experimenters, or of a few occu- 
pying farms of considerable magnitude ; yet they ought to be 
conducted according to a plan of perfect unity of design." 

" Watchful care should then be taken to protect the patches 
or drills from disturbance by vermin or fowls, while still in 
the ground, and afterward from insects and birds. The use 
of gauze nets would be by no means superfluous, from the 
moment that the heads begin to form. As soon as the anthers 
show their first rudiments, in a race upon which the cross is 
to be made, they should be carefully removed, or clipped with 
a pair of sharp scissors, leaving the female organs undisturbed. 
Thus both races would be impregnated with the pollen of one. 
When matured, the utmost care should be taken to gather 
the seeds of the crossed race by itself." 

Hybridization is an operation requiring dexterity, a light 
and steady hand, and it has been frequently remarked, that 
the operation is more uniformly successful when performed by 
a female. Many singular facts with regard to the structure of 
flowers have been discovered through attempts to hybridize. 
In the common nettle the stamens have elastic filaments which 
are at first bent down so as to be obscured by the calyx ; but 
when the pollen is ripe, the filaments jerk out, and thus scat- 
ter the powder on the pistils which occupy separate flowers. 
In the common barberry the lower part of the filament is very 
irritable, and whenever it is touched the stamen moves forward 
to the pistil. In the stylewort the stamens and pistils are 
united in a common column, which projects from the flower ; 
this column is very irritable at the angle where it leaves the 
flower, and when touched it passes with a sudden jerk from 
one side to the other, and thus scatters the pollen. 

It frequently happens in gardens, that there are accidental 
crosses, which may be attributed to divers causes, but as a 



NATURAL HYBRIDS. 



33 



general thing owe their origin to the agency of insects, bees, 
bugs, etc. These accidental crosses happen most frequently in 
the cabbage tribe. Double flowers, like the chrysanthemums, 
are always sterile, and the hybrids, as a matter of course, can 
not reproduce; but Mons. Gallesia has produced double flow- 
ers, by crossing semi-double with semi-double ones, and has 
succeeded in obtaining fertile seed from semi-double and even 
double ranunculus ! Hybrids have been produced by horti- 
culturists between the ox-htart and the morello cherry, also 
between the damson plum and the wild bullace-tree. Annexed 
is a list of plants which have been found to produce hybrids 
in their wild or uncultivated state, and without the agency of 
man : 



MALE PARENT. 

1. Festuca Elongata, 

(Spiked Fescue) 

2. Scirpus Lacustris, 
(Lake Bull-rush, round stem) 



FEMALE PARENT. 
Lolium perenne, 

(Uye-grass, or Darnel) 
Scirpus triqueter, 

( Triangular Hush) 



HYBRIDS. 

Festuca Loliacse.* 



3. Nigritella angustifolia, Gymnadenia odoratissima, 

(Orchid) 

4. Ophrys nmscifera, Ophrys aranifera, 

5. Salix fragilis, Salix alba, — (White WillowSaAix Russelliana. 

( Willaiv with smooth ovaries) with glabrous ovaries) 



Scirpus Duvalii. 
Nigritella suaveolens. 
Ophrys hybrida. 



6. Salix fragilis, 

7. Salix purpureo, 

8. Salix purpureo, 

9. Salix purpureo, 

10. Salix viminalis, 

11. Populus alba, 

(Silver-leaf Poplar) 

12. Rumex palustris, 

(Dock) 

13. Inula Germanica, 

(Elecampane) 
H. Cardials nutans, 

(Thistle) 
15 Cir-ium arvcnsi, 

(Canada Thistle) 
Hi. Cirsium catio, 

17. Ilieraciuni praalto, 

(Hawk-iueed) 

18. Hieracium villoso, 



Salix triandra, 
Salix viminalis, 

(Basket Willow) 
Salix cinerea, 
Salix repens, 
Salix caprea, 
Populus tremula, 

(Aspen) 
Rumex obtusifolia, 

(Broad leaved) 
Inula ensifolia, 

Carduus acanthoides, 

Cirsium palustre, 

Cirsium oleraceum, 
Hieracium pilesella, 

Hieracium murorum, 



Salix speciosa. 
Salix rubra. 

Salix Pontederana. 
Salix Doniana. 
Many hybrids. 
Populus canescens. 

Rumex Steinii. 

Inula hybrida. 



Cirsium chailleti. 

Cirsium tataricum. 
Hieracium bifurcum. 

Hieracium villoso murorum. 



*The seeds of this plant are invariably imperfect — this fact led botanists to sus- 
pect that it was a hybrid. 



34 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



FEMALE PARENT. 
Hieracimn murorum, 
Galium mollugo, 



MALE PARENT. 

19. Hieracium alpinum, 

20. Galium verum, 

(Madderwort) 

21. Mentha sylvatica, 

(Mini) 

22. Verbascum tliapsus, 

(Mullein) 

23. Verbascum nigra, 

24. Verbascum specioso, 

25. Verbascum specioso, 

26. Veronica anagallis, 

(Brooklime) 

27. Primula integrifolia, 

(Primrose) 

28. Erysimum hieracifolium, Erysimum canescens, 

(Phlox wall-flower) 

29. Nasturtium amphibium, Nasturtium sylvestre, 

30. Rosa canina, Rosa rubiginosa, 

31. Geum urbana, Geum rivale, 

(A vens) 

32. Medicago sativum, Medicago falcate, 



Mentha aquatica, 

Verbascum phlomoides, 

Verbascum austriacum, 
Verbascum orientale, 
Verbascum phceniceum, 
Veronica beccabunga, 

Primula minima, 



HYBRIDS. 
Hieracium alpi no murorum. 
Galium ochroleucum. 

Mentha nepetoides. 



Primula Florkenna. 

Erysimum virgatum. 

Nasturtium austriacum. 
Rosa sepium. 
Geum intermedium. 

Medicago media. 



Professor G^ertner. of Stuttgardt, and A. Neilreich, of Vi- 
enna, having devoted much time to the study of this subject, 
state that the cereals are among the plants least favorable to 
hybridization. Professor John Lindley, professor of Botany 
in the University College, London, does not regard the pro- 
cess by any means as impracticable, but merely difficult in 
manipulation — in removing the expanded anthers, and then 
applying the pollen of another. Mr. Maund, of Bromsgrove, 
Warwickshire (England), obtained a prize medal at the indus- 
trial exhibition in London, in 1851, for hybrid specimens 
produced from the annexed varieties of wheat : 



MALE. 
1 Old Lammas, 

2. Pearl White, 

3. Clustered Red, 

4. Old Lammas, 

5. Boston Red, 

6. White Cone (hairy), 

7. Dark Cone, 



FEMALE. 
Donna Maria, 
Oxford Red, 
Satin White, 
Kings' White, 
Donna Maria, 
Northumberland 
(smooth), 
Pearl , 



Red 



HYBRID. 
Ad ear larger than either parent. 

Do. do. do. 

Coarse, rough, short ear. 
Very large, long ear. 
Large ear, very strong straw. 
Long, beardless ear, rather downy. 

Small, deformed, white ear. 



Mr. Maund found, as a general rule in hybridizing wheat, 



raynbird's experiments. 35 

that a strong male and weak female produced a better result 
than a weak male and a strong female. 

In 1848, Mr. Raynbird, of Laverstake, obtained a gold 
medal from the Highland (Scotland) Society, for experiments 
of this kind. Mr. R. commenced his experiments in 1846, 
with the u Hopetoun" a white wheat, of long ear and straw, 
and fine grain, and "Piper's Thickset" a coarse, red wheat, 
with thick clustered ears, a stiff straw, and very prolific, but 
liable to mildew. The hybrids thus obtained, were interme- 
diate between the two parents — the ears are shorter than in 
the "Hopetoun" and larger than in the "Thickset." 



36 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER II. 

CEREALS AND GRASSES. 

Of all the plants now so universally diffused over the sur- 
face of the globe, the grasses are of the first importance to 
man. From them he derives all the essentials of life. The 
cereals, embracing a portion only of the family of grasses, are 
to man in his civilized condition more important than the 
other classes of the grasses. They contain the elements to 
form, bone, muscle and fat. Almost every family of plants 
contain some which are deleterious in their effects when 
eaten, from which general rule the ceralia are not exempt. 
One plant, the Lolium temulentum, is said to be poisonous.* 

As nothing can bo uninteresting which is connected with the 
habits of a tribe of such vast importance to man, T extract 
the following account of the geographical distribution of 
grasses by Schouw, from Jameson's Philosophical Journal for 
April, 1825 : " The family is very numerous ; Persoon's 
Synopsis contains 812 species, one twenty-sixth part of all the 
plants therein enumerated. In the system of Roemer and 
Schulres there are 1,800 ; and, since this work, were it brought 
to conclusion, would probably contain 40,000 in all, it may be 
assumed that the grasses form a twenty-second part. It is 
more than probable, however, that in future the grasses will 
increase in a larger ratio than the other phanerogamic plants ; 
and that, perhaps, the just proportion will be as one to twenty, 
or as one to sixteen. Greater still will be this proportion 
to vegetation in general, when the number of individuals is 
taken into account; for, in this respect the greater number, 
nay, perhaps, the whole of the other classes are inferior ; with 
regard to locality in such a large family, very little can be 

* For a detailed account of this plant see Burnett's Outlines of Botany. 



TROPICAL GRASSES. 37 

advanced. Among the grasses there are both land and water, 
but no marine plants. They occur in every soil, in society 
with others, and alone ; the last to such a degree as entirely 
to occupy considerable districts. Sand appears to be less favor- 
able to this class ; but even this has species nearly peculiar to 
itself. The diffusion of this family has almost no other lim- 
its than those of the whole vegetable kingdom. Grasses 
occur under the equator, and Agrostis algida was one of the 
few plants which Phipps met with on Spitsbergen. On the 
mountains of the south of Europe, Poa disticha and other 
grasses ascend almost to the snow line ; and, on the Andes, 
this is also the case with Poa malulensis and dactyloides, 
Deyeuxia rigida, and Festuca dasyantha. 

" The greatest differences between tropical and extra tropical 
grasses appear to be the following: 1. The tropical grasses 
acquire a much greater hight, and occasionally assume the 
appearance of trees. Some species of Bambusa are from fifty 
to sixty feet high. 2. The leaves of the tropical grasses are 
broader, and approach more in form to those of other families 
of plants. Of this the genus paspalpus affords many exam- 
ples. 3. Separate sexes are more frequent in the tropical 
grasses. Zea, Sorghum, Andropogon, Olyra, Anthistiria, Is- 
chasmum, iEgilops, and many other genera, which only occur 
in the torrid zone, and are there found in perfection, are 
monoecious or polygamous. Holcus is, perhaps, the only 
extra tropical genus with separate sexes. 4. The flowers are 
softer, more downy and elegant. 5. The extra tropical grasses, 
on the contrary, far surpass the tropical in respect to the 
number of individuals. That compact grassy turf which, 
especially in the colder parts of the temperate zones, in spring 
and summer, composes the green meadows and pastures, is 
almost entirely wanting in the torrid zones. 

The grasses there do not grow crowded together ; but, like 
other plants, more dispersed. Even in the southern parts of 
Europe, the assimilation to the warmer regions in this respect, 
is by no means inconsiderable. Arundo donax, by its hight, 



38 THE WHEAT TLANT. 

reminds us of the Bamboo, Saccharuin Ravennse, S. Tenerif- 
fae, Imperata Arunclinacea, Lagura Ovatus, Lygeum Spartum, 
and the species of Andropogon, iEgilops, etc., by separate 
sexes, exhibit tropical qualities. The grasses are also less 
gregarious, and meadows seldomer occur in the south than in 
the north of Europe. The generality are social plants. 

The distribution of cultivated grasses is one of the most in- 
teresting of all subjects. It is not merely governed by climate, 
but depends on the civilization, industry and traffic of the 
people, and often on historical events. Within the northern 
polar circle, agriculture is found only in a few places. In 
Siberia, grain reaches at the utmost only to 60°, in the eastern 
parts, scarcely above 50°, and in Kamstchatka there is no 
agriculture even in the most southern parts (51°). The polar 
limit of agriculture, on the northwest coast of America, 
appears to be somewhat higher ; for, in the more southern 
Russian possessions (57° to 52°), barley and rye come to 
maturity. On the east coast of America, it is scarcely above 
50° to 52°. 

Only in Europe, namely, in Lapland, does the polar limit 
reach an unusually high latitude (70°). Beyond this, dried 
fish, and here and there potatoes, supply the place of grain. 
The grains which extend furthest to the north in Europe are 
barley and oats. These, which in the milder climates are not 
used for bread, afford to the inhabitants of the northern parts 
of Norway and Sweden, of a part of Siberia and Scotland, 
their chief vegetable nourishment. Rye is the next which be- 
comes associated with these. This is the prevailing grain in 
a great part of the northern temperate zone, namely, in the 
south of Sweden and Norway, Denmark, and in all the lands 
bordering on the Baltic ; the north of Germany and part of 
Siberia. In the latter, another very nutritious grain, buck- 
wheat, is very frequently cultivated. In the zone where rye 
prevails, wheat is generally to be found ; barley being here 
chiefly cultivated for the manufacture of beer, and oats sup- 
plying food for the horses. To these there follows a 



GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF CEREALS oO 

zone in Europe, and Western Asia, where rye disappears, and 
wheat almost exclusively furnishes bread. The middle, or the 
south of France, England, part of Scotland, a part of Ger- 
many, Hungary, the Crimea and Caucasus, as also the lands 
of middle Asia, where agriculture is followed, belong to this 
zone. Here the vine is also found ; wine supplants the use of 
beer ; and barley is consequently less raised. Next comes a 
district where wheat still abounds, but no longer exclusively 
furnishes bread, rice and maize becoming frequent. 

To this zone belong Portugal, Spain, part of France on the 
Mediterranean, Italy and Greece ; further, the countries of the 
east, Persia, Northern India, Arabia, Egypt, Nubia, Barbary, 
and the Canary Islands ; in these latter countries, however, 
the culture of maize or rice toward the south is always more 
considerable, and in some of them several kinds of sorghum 
(douhra) and Poa Abyssinica come to be added. 

In both these regions of wheat, rye only occurs at a consi- 
derable elevation ; oats, however, more seldom, and at last 
entirely disappear ; barley affording food for horses and 
mules. In the eastern parts of the temperate zone of the old 
continent, in China and Japan, our northern kinds of grain 
are very unfrequent, and rice is found to predominate. The 
cause of this difference between the east and the west of the 
old continent appears to be in the manners and peculiarities 
of the people. In North America wheat and rye grow as in 
Europe, but more sparingly. Maize is more reared in the 
western than in the old continent, and rice predominates in 
the southern provinces of the United States. In the torrid 
zone, maize predominates in America, rice in Asia, and both 
these grains in nearly equal quantity in Africa. The cause 
of this distribution is, without doubt, historical ; for Asia is 
the native country of rice, and America of maize. In some 
situations, especially in the neighborhood of the tropics, 
wheat is also met with, but always subordinate to these other 
kinds of grain. Besides rice and maize there are, in the tor- 
rid zone, several kinds of grain, as well as other plants, which 



•40 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

supply the inhabitants with food, either used along with them, 
or entirely occupying their place. Such are, in the new con- 
tinent, yams (Dioseorea a lata), the manihot (Jatsopha 
manihot), and the batatas (convolvulus batatas), the root of 
which, and the fruit of the pisang (Banana nusa), furnish 
universal articles of food. In the same zone, in Allien, 
doura (sorghum), pisang, manihot, yams, and Asachis 
hypogsea. In the East Indies, and on the Indian Islands, 
Elusine coracana, E. stricta, Panicum frumentaceum ; several 
palms and Cycadeal, which produce the sago ; pisang, yams, 
batatas, and the breadfruit (Artocaspus incisa). In the 
islands of the South Sea, grain of every kind disappears, its 
place being supplied by the breadfruit tree, the pisang, and 
tacca pinnatifida. In the tropical parts of New Holland 
there is no agriculture, the inhabitants living on the produce 
of the sago, the various palms, and some species of Arum. 

In the highlands of South America, there is a distribution 
similar to that of the degrees of latitude. Maize, indeed, 
grows to the Light of 7,200 feet above the level of the sea, 
but only predominates between 3,000 and 6,000 of elevation. 
Below 3,000 feet it is associated with the pisang and the 
above mentioned vegetables ; while, from 6,000 to 9,260 feet, 
the European grains abound ; wheat in the lower regions, and 
rye and barley in the higher; along with which Chinopodium 
quinoa, as a nutritious plant, must also be enumerated. Pota- 
toes alone are cultivated from 9,260 to 12,300 feet. To the 
south of the tropic of Capricorn, wherever agriculture is 
practiced, considerable resemblance with the northern temper- 
ate zone may be observed. 

In the southern parts of Brazil, in Buenos Ayres, in Chili, 
at the Cape of Good Hope, and in the temperate zone of New 
Holland, wheat predominates ; barley, however, and rye make 
their appearance in the southernmost parts of these countries, 
and in Van Dicman's Land. In New Zealand the culture of 
wheat is said to have been tried with success; but the inhabit- 
ants avail themselves of the Acrostichum fuscatum as the main 



WHAT CEREALS MOST IN USE. 41 

article of sustenance. Hence, it appears that, in respect of 
the predominating kinds of grain, the earth may be divided 
into five grand divisions, or kingdoms. The kingdom of rice, 
of maize, of wheat, of rye, and lastly of barley and oats. The 
first three are the most extensive ; the maize has the greatest 
range of temperature, but rice may be said to support the 
greatest number of the human race. It is a very remarkable 
circumstance, that the native country of wheat, oats, barley, 
and rye, should be entirely unknown ; for, although oats and 
barley were found by Col. Chesney, apparently wild, on the 
banks of the Euphrates, it is doubtful whether they were not 
the remains of cultivation. This has led to an opinion, on 
the part of some persons, that all our cereal plants are artifi- 
cial productions, obtained accidentally, but retaining their 
habits, which have become fixed in the course of ages. 

The uses of this most important tribe of plants, for fodder, 
food, and clothing, require little illustration. The abundance 
of wholesome fsecula contained in their seeds, renders them 
peculiarly well adapted for the sustenance of man ; and if the 
Cereal Grasses only, such as Wheat, Barley, Bye, Oats, Maize, 
Rice, and Guinea Corn, are the kinds generally employed, it 
is because of the large size of their grain, compared with that 
of other Grasses ; for none are unwholesome in their natural 
state, with the exception of Lolium temulentum, a common 
weed in many parts of England, the effects of which are un- 
doubtedly deleterious, although perhaps exaggerated ; of Bro- 
mus purgans and catharticus, said to be emetic and purgative ; 
of Bromus mollis, reported to be unwholesome, and of Festuca 
quadrudentata, which is said to be poisonous in Quito, where it 
is called pigonil. To these must be added Molinia varia, inju- 
rious to cattle, according to Endlicher ; and a variety of Pas- 
palum scrobiculatum, called Hureek in India, which is perhaps 
the Ghrhona Grass, a reputed Indian poisonous species, said to 
render the milk of cows that graze upon it narcotic and drastic. 
It is however uncertain, how far the injurious action of some of 
these may be owing to mechanical causes, which, in the case 
4 



42 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

of the species of Calamagrostis and Stipa seem to be the cause 
of mischief in consequence of their roughness and bristles. 

In their qualities the poisonous species seem to approach 
the properties of putrid wheat, which is known to be danger- 
ous. Among corn-plants less generally known, may be men- 
tioned Eleusine cosacana, called Natchnee, on the Coromandel 
coast, and Nagla Ragee, or Mand, elsewhere in India; Pha- 
laris canadensis, which yields the canary-seed ; Zizania aquat- 
ica, or Canada Rice ; Paspalum scrobiculatum, the Menya, or 
Kodso of India, a cheap grain, regarded as unwholesome ; 
Setaria G-ermanica, or Hungarian grass ; Pariscum furmen- 
taceum, called Shamoola, in the Deccan ; Setaria italica, culti- 
vated in India under the name of Kala kangnee, or kora kang; 
Panicum millaceum, a grain called Warree in India ; and P. 
pilosum, called Bhadlee ; Penscillaria spicata, or Bajree; An- 
dropogon sorghum, or Durra, Doora, Jowarree. or Jondla; 
and Andropogon saccharatus, or Shaloo, are also grown in In- 
dia for their grain. A kind of fine-grained corn, called, on 
the west of Africa, Fundi, or Fundungi, is produced by Pas- 
palum exile ; and finally, both the Teff and Toccusso, Abys- 
sinian corn plants, are species of this order; the former Poa 
Abyssinica, the latter Eleusine tocusso. Even Stipa pennati 
is said to produce a flour much like that of Rice. The value 
of grasses, as fodder for cattle, is hardly second to that of their 
corn for human food. The best fodder grasses of Europe are 
usually dwarf species ; or at least such as do not rise more 
than three or four feet above the ground — and of these the 
larger kinds are apt to become hard and wiry. The most 
esteemed are Lolium perrenne, Phleum and Festuca pratensis, 
Cynosurus cristatus, and various species of Poa and dwarf 
Festuca, to which should be added Anthoxanthum odoratum, 
for its fragrance. But the fodder grasses of Brazil are of a 
far more gigantic stature, and perfectly tender and delicate. 
We learn from Nees von Esanbeck, that the Caapim de An- 
gola, of Brazil, Panicum spectabile, grows six or seven feet 
high ; while other equally gigantic species, constitute the field 



IMPORTANT GRASSES. 43 

crops on the banks of the Amazon. In New Holland the 
favorite is the Anthistiria australis, or Kangaroo Grass ; in 
India, the A. ciliata, is also in request. But the most com- 
mon Indian fodder grass appears to be Doorba, Doorwa, or 
Hurryalee, Cynodon Dactylon. Gama Grass, Tripsacum dac- 
tyloides, has a great reputation as fodder in Mexico ; and 
attention has lately been directed to the Tussac Grass of the 
Falklands, Festuca flabellata, a species forming tufts five or six 
feet high, and said to be unrivaled for its excellence as food for 
cattle and horses. The fragrance of our sweet vernal grass 
(Anthoxanthum), is by no means confined to it. Other spe- 
cies are Hierochloe borealis, Ataxia Horsfieldii, and some 
Andropogons ; their odor is said to be owing to the presence 
of benzoic acid. The most famous species are Andropogon 
Iwasancusa and Schoenanthus — the latter the Lemon Grass of 
English gardens ; A. calamus aromaticus, which Dr. Royle 
considers the plant of that name described by Dioscorides, and 
the "sweet cane" and "rich, aromatic reed, from a far coun- 
try," of Scripture ; and the Anatherum muricatum, called 
Vetiver, by the French, and Khus, in India, where its fragrant 
roots are employed in making tatties, covers for palan- 
quins, etc. 

This fragrance is connected with aromatic secretions, which 
have, in part, recommended grasses to the notice of medical 
practitioners. The last mentioned plant (Anatherum muri- 
catum) is said to be acrid, aromatic, stimulating, and diapho- 
retic ; another species, A. Nasdus, is called, because of its 
quality, Ginger Grass, or Koshel. The roasted leaves of 
Andropogon Schoenanthus are used in India, in infusion, as 
an excellent stomachic. An essential oil, of a pleasant taste, 
is extracted from the leaves, in the Moluccas ; and the Javan- 
ese esteem the plant much as a mild aromatic and stimulant. 
The former is one of the Grasse Oils of Nemans, called, in 
India, Ivasanensa, and described in Brewster's Journal. 
Many others partake of the same qualities. But it is not 
merely for their aroma that grasses are used medicinally. A 



44 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

cooling drink is employed, in India, from the rooty of Cyno- 
don Pactylon. The hard, stony fruits of Coix lachryma (Job's 
Tears), have been supposed to be strengthening and diuretic; 
and the latter quality has been recognized in many others, 
especially the common Reeds, Phragmites arundinacea, and 
Calamagrostis, in Europe ; Perotis latifolia, in the West Indies, 
and the Brazilian species of G-ynesium. A decoction of Eleu- 
sine indica is employed, in Demarara, in the convulsions of 
infants, according to Schomburg. Donax arundinacea is 
astringent and subacid. The creeping roots of the Quitch, or 
Quick Grass, Triticum repens, of Tr. glaucum and pinceum, 
and Cynodon Dactylon and lineare, have some reputation as a 
substitute for Sarsaparilla. A decoction of the root of Gyne- 
rium parriflorum is used, in Brazil, to strengthen the hair. 

Sugar is a general product of grasses. Gynerium saccha- 
roides, a Brazilian grass, derives its name from that circum- 
stance. It exists in great quantity in the sugar-cane (Saccha- 
rum officinaruni); maize so abounds in it that its cultivation 
has been proposed in lieu of the sugar-cane ; and it is probable 
that the value of other species for fodder depends upon the 
abundance of this secretion. 

For economical purposes grasses are often of much import- 
ance. The strong stems of the Bamboo are employed instead 
of timber and cordage. The Arundo arenaria, and Elymus 
arenarious (Marram Grasses) are invaluable species for keep- 
ing together the blowing sands of the seacoast, by their 
creeping suckers, and tough, entangled roots. The first is 
employed in the Hebrides for many economical purposes, being 
made into ropes for various uses, mats for packsaddles, bags, 
hats, etc. Some of the reeds of Brazil, called Taquarussa, are 
living fountains; they grow from thirty to forty feet high, 
with a diameter of six inches ; form thorny, impenetrable 
thickets and are exceedingly grateful to hunters, for, on cut- 
ting off such a reed, below a joint, the stem of the younger 
shoots is found to be full of a cool liquid, which quenches the 
most burning thirst. Heeds, and other coarse species, furnish 



RYE AND ITS VARIETIES. 45 

in Europe, the materials for thatching. The reeds (sometimes 
sixteen feet long), from which the Indians of Esmeraldi form 
the tubes -whence they blow the arrows, poisoned with the 
deadly Urari, or Woorali, are single internodes of the Arun- 
dinaria Schomburghii. A coarse but good sort of soft paper 
is manufactured in India from the tissue of the Bamboo, and 
the very young shoots of that plant are eaten, like asparagus. 

Besides these things, the inorganic products are remarka- 
ble. That the cuticle contains a large proportion of t-ilex is 
proved by its hardness, and by masses of vitrified matter being 
found, whenever a haystack or heap of corn is accidentally 
consumed by fire. In the joints of some grasses, a perfect 
siliceous deposit is found, particularly in a kind of jungle-grass 
mentioned in a letter from Dr. Moore to Dr. Kennedy, of 
Edinburg. It is also said, that wheat-straw may be melted 
into a colorless glass, with a blow-pipe, without any addition. 
Barley-straw melts into a glass of a topaz-yellow color. The 
siliceous matter of the bamboo is often secreted at the joints, 
where it forms a singular substance, called tabasheer, of which 
see a very interesting account in Brewster's Journal. It was 
found by Turner, that the tabasheer of India, consisted of 
silica, containing a minute quantity of lime and vegetable 
matter. Sulphur exists, in combination with different bases, 
in wheat, barley, rye, oats, maize, millet, and rice. 

A brief sketch of the most prominent cereals, other than 
wheat, may not be inappropriate in this place. 

Rye. (Secede cerecde.') 

This plant is extensively cultivated in continental Europe, 
where it forms the food of perhaps one-third of the entire pop- 
ulation. It is not much cultivated in England, and is now 
less cultivated in Ohio, and other States, than formerly. It 
has been supposed to be a native of the island of Crete* of 
Candia,f and many other eastern portions of the globe. Karl 

* Herman Wagner. iRlund's Vegetable Kingdom. 



46 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Koch* asserts very dogmatically, that he found it growing 
undoubtedly wild in the mountains of the Crimea, especially 
all around the village of Dshimil, on granite, at the elevation 
of from five thousand to six thousand feet. In such places 
its ears are not more than one to two and a half inches long. 
But it nowhere has been observed in a truly wild state, away 
from the possibility of escape from cultivation, being sown by 
the agency of man. The Secale montanum has a brittle, hairy 
rachis, glumes with a short point, and root fibrous. It is 
found on the gravelly mountains in Sicily. In France is 
found the Secale villosum, also a European species of rye. 
From the fact that Secale fragile, and S. anatolicum were 
found in Armenia, as well as in Asia Minor, some have sup- 
posed it to be a native of those places. 

There are two varieties, only, in general cultivation : viz., the 
winter, and the spring varieties. In England three sub- 
varieties are grown, viz : 

I. Tyrolese, or Griant Rye, a kind recently introduced, and 
coming into use a week or ten days earlier than the common 
rye. It is, however, considered by some farmers, that the 
produce is not equal to, nor the feed so lasting, as that of the 
common ; but its earliness more than compensates the flock- 
master for this defect. 

II. The St. John's Day, or Midsummer Rye ; so called from 
the time of sowing. It is considerably later in running to 
ear and ripening, and produces far more root-foliage than the 
common kind. In France it is often sown at the end of June, 
and eaten down with sheep in the autumn months, and spring- 
till the latter end of April, when it is allowed to run to seed, 
and considered to produce an equal or better grain crop, by 
being so treated, than if cultivated in the usual manner. 

III. Cooper's Early Broad-leafed Rye, was introduced some 
twelve or fifteen years ago into England by Mr. Cooper. 
This sub -variety appears far more productive of early feed 
than any of the others. 

* Morton's Encyclopaedia of Agriculture. 



RYE AND ITS USES. 47 

Two centuries ago rye flour, either alone, or mixed with 
wheaten flour, formed the common bread of the country. 
Now, this mixture is only partially used. At present, rye is 
cultivated by our farmers principally that they may draw from 
it a supply of green food for their flocks. 

For this purpose the plants, which are sown in November, 
are eaten early in the spring, before they begin to spindle, 
which they will do before the first of March. After this 
stage of the growth has taken place, the succulent quality of 
the blade is impaired, it becomes coarse and harsh, and is no 
longer agreeable to animals. When rye is left to ripen its seeds, 
these are, for the most part, applied in this country to pur- 
poses distinct from human food; one of the uses to which 
the grain is put being the preparation of a vegetable acid, to 
be employed by tanners in an operation which they call 
raising, and whereby the pores of the hides are distended, so 
as to dispose them the more readily to imbibe the tanning 
principle of the oak-bark, which is afterward applied. Rye, 
when parched and ground, has been recently used as a sub- 
stitute for coffee. 

It would be difficult, however, to convince any one accus- 
tomed to the use of this grateful beverage, that the grain of 
home production is ever likely to take the place, at least to 
any extent, of the fragrant Mocha bean. 

In fact, rye contains neither the aromatic nor stimulating 
properties which render coffee so grateful. It was formerly 
usual to sow rye together with an early kind of wheat. The 
harvested grain, thus necessarily intermixed, was termed 
meslin, from miscellanea; it also obtained the name of 
mung-corn, corruptly from- monk-corn, because bread made 
from it was commonly eaten in monasteries. With the excep- 
tion of wheat, rye contains a greater proportion of gluten 
than any other of the cereal grains, to which fact is owing its 
capability of being converted into a spongy bread. It con- 
tains, likewise, nearly five parts in every hundred of ready- 
formed saccharine matter, and is, in consequence, easily 



48 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

convertible into malt, and thence into beer or ardent spirits ; 
but the produce of this last is so small in comparison with 
that of malted barley, as to offer no inducement for its 
employment to that purpose. Rye has a strong tendency 
to pass rapidly from the vinous to the acetous state of fermen- 
tation, and whenever that circumstance has intervened, it would 
be vain to attempt either to brew or to distil it. Unmalted rye 
meal is mixed in Holland with barley malt, in the proportion of 
two parts by weight of the former, with one part of the latter, 
and the whole being fermented together forms the wash 
whence is distilled all the grain spirit produced in that 
country, and known throughout Europe as Hollands, Geneva. 
There must, however, be some circumstances of a peculiar 
nature connected with the process, as conducted by the Dutch 
distillers, since no attempts made elsewhere have ever been 
successful in obtaining a spirit having the same good quali- 
ties. Rye is the common bread-corn in all the sandy dis- 
tricts to the south of the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Finland, 
furnishing abundance of food for the numerous inhabitants of 
places which, without it, must have been little better than 
sandy and uninhabited deserts. In these districts it not only 
forms the chief article of consumption, but furnishes a material 
of some consequence to the export trade of the Prussian ports. 
The peasantry in Sweden subsist very generally upon rye 
cakes, which they bake only twice in the course of the year ; 
and which, during most part of the time, are consequently as 
hard as a board. Linnaeus observed a curious practice in 
Lapland. One part of rye and two parts of barley being 
mixed together, the seed is committed to the ground as soon 
as the earth is capable of tillage in the spring. The barley 
shoots up vigorously, ripens its ears, and is reaped ; while the 
rye merely goes into leaf without shooting up any stem, its 
growth being retarded by the barley, which may be said to 
smother it. After the barley is reaped, the rye advances in 
growth ; and, without any further care of the cultivator, 
yields an abundant crop in the following year. 



BARLEY. 49 

Barley. (Hordeum.) 

Some writers are of opinion that barley originated in 
Northern Asia, and do not hesitate to assert that the shores 
of Samara, in Orenburg, are its primitive home. Other 
writers, who cite Disdones as authority, indicate its place of 
nativity in Northern Africa. Certain it is, that at a very early 
period it was used as an article of food by the Egyptians and 
Arabians, as well as those occupying Palestine. Col. Chesney, 
on his return from the Euphrates to England, took with him 
several kinds of wild barley, as well as some from the ruins of 
Persepolis. These specimens were of the two-rowed kind — 
which is the only kind ever observed in a wild state ; the four 
and six-rowed varieties being the result of domestication. The 
assertion the barley grew wild on the Island of Sicily appears 
to be unfounded ; but no doubt the jEgilops ovata, to which 
full reference will be made in the next chapter, and which is 
found in great abundance on the shores and islands of the 
Mediterranean, has been mistaken for wild barley. All 
accounts with respect to the origin of barley must be received 
with a considerable degree of allowance, because the hardiest 
varieties have never been known to propagate themselves for 
two successive years without the direct agency of man. The 
seeds of cultivated barley, when adventitiously sown, produce 
plants truly ; but these plants very rarely, if ever, produce 
seed which will germinate. Botanists have placed some 
grasses in the same genus with barley, which somewhat resem- 
ble the latter in many respects ; but, notwithstanding the 
highest degree of culture yet bestowed upon them, they 
can not be brought into use as daily food for mankind, nor 
be made to exhibit any marked degree of improvement. 

Barley has a greater geographical range than any other 
cereal in general use ; it is susceptible of being cultivated not 
only in the central portions of Africa and Asia, but yields 
good harvests on the Orkney, Shetland, and Faroe Islands, in 
latitude ranging from 61° to 62^° N. It does not, however, 
5 " 



\ 



I 



50 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ripen in Iceland, 63 1,° N. latitude, but in Lapland its north- 
ern limit is near the parallel of 70.° 

There are, altogether, perhaps thirty varieties and sub-vari- 
eties of barley in cultivation in Europe and America. 

In one respect, barley is of more importance to mankind 
than wheat, from the fact that it is susceptible of withstand- 
ing the effects of heat and drought better, growing upon 
lighter soils, and coming so quickly to maturity, that the short 
Northern summers, which do not admit of the ripening of wheat, 
are yet of long enough duration for the perfection of barley. 
It is the latest sown and the earliest reaped of all the summer 
grains. In warm climates, such as Spain, the farmers can 
gather two harvests of barley within the year, one in the 
spring from winter-sown grain, and the other in autumn from 
that sown in summer. Barley sown in June is commonly 
ready for the sickle in three months from the time of the seed 
^ being committed to the ground ; and in very Northern cli- 
,\ J* mates, the period necessary for its growth and perfection is 
JC said to be of still shorter duration. Linnasus relates, in his 
tour in Lulean Lapland, that on the 28th of July, he observed 
^v^^the commencement of the barley harvest, and although the 
seed was sown only a few days before midsummer, that the 
grain was perfectly ripe, the whole process having thus occu- 
pied certainly not longer than six weeks. The property of 
not requiring moisture admirably fits barley for propagation 
in those Northern countries, where the duration of summer 
is limited to a very few months in a year, and where wet is of 
very rare occurrence from the time when the spring rains are 
over, at the end of May or beginning of June ; after which 
period the seed-time commences, till the autumnal equinoxes, 
previous to which the harvest is reaped. 

Oats. (Arena.) 

The native country of the oat is entirely unknown, but from 
its hardiness it is supposed to be of Northern origin. It can 
be successfully cultivated, even to the arctic zone. In Scot- 



OATS AND ITS USES. 51 

land it is cultivated north of 58i° North latitude, or, in other 
words, in a parallel of latitude nearly 1,200 miles north of 
Columbus, Ohio. But after the most diligent search, botanists 
assure us that no trace of it has been found in a wild state. 
Some suppose it to be a domesticated variety of some wild 
species, and Prof. Lindley indicates that the wild species re- 
ferred to may be the Avena Strigosa, or the bristle pointed 
oat, which, he says, would become the common oat by a slight 
alteration of the form and divisions of its palaes, and the loss 
of one of its awns — changes much less considerable than are 
known to have taken place in other cultivated plants. Its 
place of nativity has been variously ascribed, as to Persia, the 
banks of the Euphrates, etc. 

Oatmeal, prepared by various processes of working, com- 
poses at this day a large proportion of the food of the inhabi- 
tants of Scotland, and particularly of the better fed portion 
of the laboring classes. Oaten cakes, too, are much used in 
Lancashire. 

The wild oat, which is certainly indigenous to this country, 
is found to be a very troublesome weed. It is said that the seed 
will remain buried under the soil during a century or more, 
without losing its vegetating power ; and that ground which 
has been broken up, after remaining in grass from time im- 
memorial, has produced the wild oat abundantly. The Anglo- 
Saxon monks of the abbey of St. Edmund, in the eighth cen- 
tury, ate barley bread, because the income of the establish- 
ment would nol admit of their feeding twice or thrice a day 
on wheaten bread. The English laborers of the Southern and 
midland counties, in the latter part of the eighteenth century, 
refused to eat bread made of one-third wheat, one-third rye, 
and one-third barley, saying, that " they had lost their rye- 
teeth." It would be a curious and not unprofitable inquiry, 
to trace the progress of the national taste in this particular. 
It would show that whatever privations the English laborer 
may now endure, and whatever he has endured for many gen- 
erations, he has succeeded in rendering the dearest kind of 



52 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

vegetable food the general food of the country; this single 
circumstance is a security to him against those sufferings from 
actual famine, which were familiar to his forefathers, and 
which are still objects of continual apprehension in those 
countries where the laborers live upon the cheapest substances. 
Wages can not be depressed in such a manner as to deprive 
the laborer, for any length of time, of the power of maintain- 
ing himself upon the kind of food which habit has made ne- 
cessary to him ; and as the ordinary food of the English 
laborers is not the very cheapest that can be readily obtained, 
it is in his power to have recourse for a while to less expensive 
articles of subsistence, should any temporary scarcity of food, 
or want of employment, deprive him of his usual fare — an 
advantage not possessed by his Irish fellow-subjects, to whom 
the failure of a potato crop is a matter not of discomfort 
merely, but of absolute starvation. 

The common oat, Avena Sativa, is that which is most gen- 
erally cultivated. One writer (John Haxton, of Fifeshire) 
enumerates thirty-four varieties of white oats of the sativa 
species, and six black, dun, red, or parti-colored of the same 
species. Altogether he enumerates fifty varieties of oats. 

The Tartarian oat is by some considered a distinct species, 
but it is doubtful whether it can be regarded as any thing 
more than a variety of A. Satwa. Botanists call it A. Orien- 
talis ; but its native country seems as uncertain as that of the 
last. 

A. Nuda, or naked oat, so called because its grain is loose 
in the husk, is found wild in many parts of Europe, and by 
some is thought to be a mere degeneration of the common oat. 
It is common in Austria, where it is cultivated for its grain, 
which is, however, small, and not much esteemed. 

A. Chinensis, or Chinese oat, is another species, the grain 
of which is loose in the husk. It is said to have been pro- 
cured by the Russians from the north of China along with 
their tea. This species is the most productive of all the kinds 
known, every flower producing from three to five grains, 



ANIMAL OATS — CORN. 53 

which are large and of excellent quality. It is, however, said 
to be difficult to harvest on account of the grains not adhering 
to the husks, but being very easily shaken out. 

Animal Oats. — Besides the species cultivated for the corn 
which they yield, there is another that deserves to be noticed 
on account of its remarkable hygrometrical action. This plant, 
the Animal Oat of gardeners, the A. Sterilis of systematic 
writers, is something like the common oat when young ; but 
when ripe, its grains are inclosed in hard, hairy, brown husks, 
from the back of which rises a stout, bent and twisted awn. 
Usually, two such husks grow together, and separate from the 
stalk by a deep oblique scar. Taking the scar for the head 
of an insect, the husks with their long, stiff, brown hairs 
resemble its body, and the two bent awns represent its legs. 

In this State fishermen use a smaller, but nearly allied spe- 
cies, called heavers (A. Fatna), instead of artificial flies, for 
catching trout. When the animal oat is ripe it falls out of 
its glumes, and in warm, dry weather maybe seen rolling and 
turning about on its long, ungainly legs, as they twist up in 
consequence of their hygrometrical quality. It necessarily 
advances as it turns over, because the long stiff hairs upon its 
body catch against every little projecting point on the surface 
of the soil, and prevent its retreat. 

Nothing can be more curious than to see the path of a 
garden -walk covered with these things, tumbling and sprawl- 
in^ about in different directions, till their awns are so twisted 
that they can twist no further. They then remain quiet till the 
dews fall, or they are moistened by a shower, w r hen they ra- 
pidly untwist, and run about with renewed activity, as if 
anxious to get out of the wet. 

Corn. (Zca Mays?) 

Botanists have, by general consent, applied the generic term 
zra to our Indian corn, no doubt presuming that it was either 
identical with the Greek zeia, or that it was a species of that 



54 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

genus ; but the Greek plant was a species of wheat or barley, 
and not at all agreeing with the present genus, which is en- 
tirely American. 

Some writers assert that there is one species only * ; others, 
that there are two f ; others again describe three. The 
common maize is a native of North America, and was culti- 
vated by Indians when the continent was first discovered ; it 
is also cultivated in most countries of Southern Europe. 
Like the species of Triticum, or wheat, those of this genus 
present almost innumerable varieties from the cultivation to 
which they have been submitted. It is found growing wild 
in many of the West Indian islands, as well as in the central 
parts of America. 

Zea Curagua, or Chili corn, or Valparaiso corn, is distin- 
guished by its serrated leaves. It is smaller in all its parts 
than the other species, and is a native of Chili. A sort 
of religious reputation is attached to this plant on ac- 
count of the grains, when roasted, splitting into the .form 
of a cross. 

A chapter or two will be devoted to this cereal in the course 
of this volume, in which the varieties, culture, chemical com- 
position, etc., will be fully discussed. 

Some writers, with great reluctance, admit that the Indian 
corn was first discovered in America ; it will not, therefore, 
be irrelevant to give in this place a brief history of its intro- 
duction into Europe. One fact, which really amounts to 
strong presumptive evidence of its American origin is this, 
that previous to the discovery of America it was unknown in 
Europe. The Spaniards were the first to introduce it on the 
continent, and the first published account of it was by Oviedo 
in 1525. In his description he states that he saw it growing 
in fields in Andalusia. It was cultivated in very few locali- 
ties during the reign of Philip II. (1555 to 1598). It is 

* Rhind. f English Cyclopedia. 



RICE. 55 

stated that the Spaniards introduced it into Sicily in 1560, and 
hence it was called Spanish, Sicilian, or Turkish corn. At the 
close of the sixteenth century, it was extensively cultivated in 
Italy. According to Leonard Fuchs, it was introduced into 
Germany in 1545, from Greece or Asia, but was cultivated as 
a curiosity in gardens. It appears to have been known in 
Hungary as early as the first half of the sixteenth century ; 
from thence it was taken to Russia, and in the seventeenth 
century into Styria. 

Rice. (Oryza.) 

The true rice plant (Oryza Sativa) is confined to warm and 

marshy districts ; hence it is never found cultivated in high 

latitudes. There- are two varieties — the one just referred to, 

and another called in India the hill or mountain rice. The 

latter has frequently been introduced into England and 

France, but its cultivation has never been successful ; and 

Prof. Lindley doubts whether some of the crops reported to 

have been grown in Europe were rice at all. M. Vilmorin, a 

celebrated French agriculturist and horticulturist, asserts 

that when he asked for evidence concerning crops of 

mountain rice, he has uniformly received the Petty Spelt, or 

Triticum Monococcum. The 0. Sativa is cultivated to a 

considerable extent in Lombardy, and some other Italian 
states. 

In Venezuela and Brazil, it is cultivated to a considerable 

extent. One variety, the 0. Sativa, was the only variety that 

was cultivated during a period of many years ; but A. von 

Humboldt discovered another species in New Granada, which 

is called by the natives Arozilla, but which is described by 

Desveaux as 0. Latifolia. Martins found rice growinsr wild 

in the interior of Rio Negro as well as in Paro, in South 

America. This circumstance indicates that it is a native of 

both hemispheres, although the culture of it was introduced 

into North America by the Europeans. Some time previous 



56 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

to the year 1701, a brigantine from the island of Madagascar, 
happened to put in at Carolina, having a little seed rice left, 
which the captain gave to a gentleman of the name of Wood- 
ward. From part of this he obtained a very good crop, but 
was ignorant for some years how to clean it. It was soon dis- 
persed over the province, and by frequent experiments and 
observations they found out ways of producing and manufac- 
turing it to so great perfection, that it is thought to exceed 
any other in value. Some time afterward, a Mr. Dubois, of 
the East India Company, sent to that country a small bag of 
seed rice ; from these two introductions it is possible that the 
two sorts, the red and the white, had their origin in this 
country. 

It is chiefly cultivated in Carolina and Louisiana, and some 
others of the Southern States. The extent to which it is cul- 
tivated in the United States is exhibited in the fact, that in 
the year 1850, the quantity exported amounted to $2,631,557 ; 
in 1854 the exports amounted to $2,034,127. 

In the genus Oryza botanists have placed numerous plants, 
some of which are mere grasses in the common acceptation of 
that term. The 0. Sativa, or the rice of commerce, is still 
found in a wild state in and about the borders of lakes in the 
llajahmundry circars of Hindostan, though never cultivated, 
because the produce is said to be small compared with that of 
the varieties in cultivation. In 1796, Dr. Buchanan found 
the 0. Goarctata growing indigenously in the Delta of the 
Ganges, but was not found to be applicable to any useful 
purpose. 

As an item of interest to agriculturists, it may not be irrel- 
evant to give a short, brief description of the culture of ric3. 
In Carolina and Georgia, a low swamp is selected which may 
readily be irrigated or overflowed. The swamp has earthen em- 
bankments so as to retain the water as long as may be 
necessary, and has also sluice ways, drains and canals, for the 
purpose of expelling the water when necessary. Considerable 



CULTIVATION OF RICE. 57 

diversity prevails in the mode of cultivating the rice crop. 
Some planters plow all the grounds every year ; those who 
follow this system give a light furrow in the beginning of 
January, and afterward make shallow furrows or drills, fifteen 
inches apart, to receive the seed, which is sown broadcast in 
April ; two to three bushels of seed are used per acre. A 
small quantity of water is then admitted for a day or two till 
the grain sprouts. But the most approved and general mode 
of cultivation is, when the fields are free from weeds to sow 
without plowing. A negro makes a rut with a hoe between 
the rice rows of a former crop, although sometimes a small 
drill plow is used. Either of these methods produce a recep- 
tacle for the seed, which is either covered with a rake, or the 
water is admitted at once and covers it by washing down the 
soil. In all cases the water is admitted on the field as soon 
as the seed is sown ; and when the young shoot appears above 
ground, it is drawn off. In the course of a week the crop 
receives another watering, which lasts from ten to thirty days, 
according to circumstances. This watering is chiefly used for 
the purpose of killing land weeds that make their appearance 
as soon as the ground becomes dry. On the other hand, when 
the field is under water, aquatic weeds grow up rapidly, and to 
check their growth the field is once more laid dry, and the 
crop is then twice hand-hoed. By the first of July the rice 
is well advanced, and water is again admitted and allowed to 
remain on the fields till the crop is ripe. Thi-; usually takes 
place from the 1st to the 10th of September. The water is 
drawn off the day previous to the commencement of reaping. 
The rice is cut by the sickle, and the stubble is left from a 
foot to a foot and a half in length, according to the rankness 
of the crop. The average produce of the unhusked rice is 
estimated from forty-five to fifty-five bushels per acre ; yet 
from seventy to eighty bushels are sometimes obtained from 
old fields. 

The rice plant adapts itself in a most wonderful manner to 
the most opposite conditions in respect to moisture; in this 



58 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

respect there is no cultivated plant that bears any resemblance 
to it. The same variety which grows on the upland cotton 
soils and on the dry pine barrens, grows in the tide swamps, 
where the land is laid under water for weeks at a time ; and 
even in the lower part of the delta of the Mississippi, where 
the fields are under water from the time of sowing to that of 
reaping. «f 






HISTORY OF THE WHEAT PLANT. 59 



CHAPTER III. 

HISTORY OP THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The wheat plant is at least co -extensive with civilization, 
and its fruit beyond a doubt, was used as food by the human 
race for ages anterior to any historical records. So far back 
into the dark vistas of time, as authentic history consents to 
be our guide, do we find that wheat has been cultivated, and 
aside from animal food, formed the chief alimentary article of 
all civilized nations ; but as the wheat plant has no where 
been found wild, or in a state of nature, the inference has 
been drawn by men of unquestionable scientific attainment, 
that the original plant from which wheat has been derived, 
was either totally annihilated, or else cultivation has wrought 
so great a change that the original is by no means obvious, or 
manifest to botanists. 

There are many circumstances, both in history and in sci- 
ence, more especially in botany, which indicate that we are 
indebted to Persia for the wheat plant, because it is yet found 
springing up in spots not only at very great distances from 
human habitations, but out of the usual routes of trafiie 
employed by the natives. It is a well known fact that wheat 
does not reproduce spontaneously in any place where the 
grain is cultivated. According to a rule adopted both by 
Robt. Brown, and Baron Humboldt, to determine the native 
country of a cultivated species, when that country is unknown, 
it is within proper bounds to regard that as the probable place 
of nativity where the greatest number of known species, 
belonging to the same genus are found indigenous. This 
rule would indicate Persia, as well as some portions of India, 
as the place of nativity. " Isis and Osiris discovered wheat, 
barley and the vine, wild in the valley of the Jordan, and 
transported them into Egypt, and taught the culture of them. 



60 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

It was at Nysa, also that Isis discovered wheat aod barley pre- 
viously, growing wild in a country among other plants unknown 
to man."* Strabo, whose writings are, perhaps, the most pre- 
cise of any of antiquity, asserts that wheat was found growing 
spontaneously in the Persian province of Mazenderan,t and 
in the country of the Musicans, to the north of India, as 
well as on the banks of the Indus. 

Some writers, whose opinions are entitled to the greatest 
respect, assert very confidently, that to India, and not to 
Persia, are we indebted for the wheat plant; modern botanists, 
however, know so little comparatively, of the region of India 
indicated, as to be unable either to corroborate or successfully 
controvert the statement. There is no doubt that the genus 
Triticum is sufficiently spread over the whole of Asia, as to 
render Strabo's statement highly probable, according to the 
rule adopted by Humboldt in such cases, which has just been 
cited. 

In a paper addressed by Sir Joseph Banks to the Horticul- 
tural Society, in the year 1805, he speaks of having received 
some packets of seeds from a lady, among them was one labeled 
"Hill Wheat," the grains of which were hardly larger than 
those of our wild grasses, but which, when viewed through a 
magnifying glass or lens, were found exactly to resemble wheat. 
He sowed these grains in his garden and was much surprised, 
on obtaining as their produce, a good crop of spring wheat, 
the grains of which were of the ordinary size. Every inquiry 
that was made to ascertain the history of these seeds proved 
fruitless ; all that could be established with regard to the 
place of their production, was that they came from India, but 
as to the particular locality, or the amount of cultivation they 
had received, or whether the grain was indeed in that instance 
a spontaneous offering of nature could not be ascertained. 

The explorations of modern travelers conducted as they are 

*Diod. Sic. I 1 c 14 and 27. 

fMichaud found Triticum Spelta growing wild on a mountain four 
days' travel distant from Hamadan, in Persia. 



WHEAT IN ANCIENT EGYPT. 61 

with much more system, as well as with most of the advantages 
which science in its present state can confer, are of greater im- 
portance, than those of by-gone centuries, and have in conse- 
quence, brought to light many important facts, which, for 
ages, were among the things unrecorded by previous genera- 
tions, and unknown to the present, relative to the state of 
perfection to which many of the sciences and arts had been 
brought by the Egyptians and other Eastern nations. In the 
sarcophagi of many of the Egyptian kings or nobles, were 
found in vessels perfectly closed, good specimens of common 
wheat, so perfect indeed that not only the form, but even the 
color was not impaired, although it must have been inclosed 
many thousands of years. It is well known to every one 
conversant with the history of Egypt, that the culture of 
wheat there has long since been abandoned, and no wild plant 
in any respect resembling the wheat plant is found, but from 
engravings on ancient tombs at Thebes of the details of plow- 
ing, sowing, harvesting and garnering this grain, there is no 
good reason to suppose it has not been cultivated in Egypt 
from the earliest dawn of this nation's civilization. After 
wheat was grown in Egypt, it would readily find its way into 
Persia, and vice versa, and might have been cultivated for cen- 
turies and then abandoned, while in some secluded spots it 
has continued to reproduce itself unaided by human inter- 
vention, and thus we find it growing there spontaneously at 
the present day. But this circumstance alone does not prove 
that wheat is indigenous either in Persia or Egypt. 

It has been claimed that wheat is indigenous on the island 
of Sicily, and that from here it spread along the northern 
shores of the Mediterranean into Asia Minor and Egypt, and 
as communities advanced it was cultivated not only to a greater 
extent, but with greater success. 

The Goddess of agriculture, more especially of grains, who 
by the Greeks was called Demeter and by the Romans Ceres, 
was said to have her native place at Enna, which was situated 
in a fertile region of Sicily, thus indicating the source from 



62 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

which the Greeks and Romans derived their Ceralia. Homer 
mentions wheat and spelt as bread — also corn and barley, and 
describes his heroes as using them for fodder for their horses, 
as the people in the south of Europe do at present. Eye was 
introduced into Greece from Thrace, or by way of Thrace, in 
the time of Galen. 

In Caesar's time the Romans grew a species of wheat which 
was enveloped in a husk, similar to our barley, and which was 
by them called " Far" and appears to have been best adapted 
to moist and low lands, while the true wheat was grown on 
the dry or upends. 

During the process of excavation in Herculaneum and Pom- 
peii, were found in numerous places charred grains of genuine 
wheat. 

Hon. Anson Dart, Superintendent of Indian Affairs in 
Oregon, states that he found wheat and flax growing sponta- 
neously in the Yackemas country in Upper Oregon, about 
eighty miles north of the Columbia river ; he found it in 
patches varying in size from a few rods to an acre or more. The 
straw and head he found to be generally very large, and the 
berry unusually so ; the berry is very plump, and weighs from 
65 to 70 pounds per bushel. There is no doubt that both the 
wheat and flax were introduced at a very early period into 
Oregon by the Hudson's Ray, or other Fur Companies. 

Dr. Royle, of Columbus, Ohio, informed the writer that 
when in California he found wheat growing spontaneously in 
the Carson Valley. He is confident that the wheat he found 
there growing had no attention from the hand of man, because 
the grain was not so well developed as the cultivated grain — 
because for miles it was scattered in " patches " too thin to have 
been the work of any one attempting the cultivation of the 
plant* 

^Statement of Dr. Boyle. — Mr. Klippart: — At your request, I will 
give you a short description of a few plants observed by me on my route 
to California, overland. 

1st. In the valley of Carson's river, just east of the Sierra Nevada, we 



WHEAT Ml MEXICO. 63 

When the Spaniards visited Mexico, in the sixteenth cen- 
tury, the cereal grasses proper were in cultivation anions the 
Mexicans. In 1530 one of Cortez's slaves found several wheat 
grains, which had accidentally been mixed with some rice. 
The careful negro planted these few seeds and their produce 
for several successive years, and from this small commence- 
ment have sprung all the subsequent wheat crops of Mexico, 
and most undoubtedly to this source may be traced that growing 
spontaneously in Carson Valley. 

Turn to whatever quarter of the globe we may, we find that 
wherever the foot of civilization has trod, the wheat plant 

passed through large fields of what seemed to be common beardless wheat, 
just ripe for the harvest, but upon examining this wheat carefully, I 
could not find any thing but a very shriveled berry, smaller in diameter 
than a wheat berry, but in other respects very similar to the poorest 
berry screened from the wheat in our mills. 

2d. In many places I saw specimens of oats, ripe and full, which I 
could not distinguish from the better varieties of our common cultiva- 
ted oats. 

•3d. I found flax in blossom resembling, in all essential particulars, our 
cultivated flax, but not quite so high. - 

4th. In California I found frequently a plant like a diminutive bearded 
wheat stalk, but covered by a downy or woolly cuticle, while the wiieat 
stalk is smooth, or nearly so. This plant presented several varieties, all 
diminutive when compared to w r heat, not being more than ten or twelve 
inches high, but having a better developed berry than the wheat-like plant 
of the other or eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, and these diminutive 
plants I have since thought to be species of iEgilops. And my opinion 
always has been, that by cultivation, they might be brought to such per- 
fection as to supply the place of, if they did not prove to be wheat. 

Besides these mentioned, I observed many other plants, either just 
like our common cultivated plants, or like these would be if left to chance 
for propagation, and become degenerated ; and the idea presented itself 
to my mind, that most probably the regions of country in which these 
were found, now almost without an inhabitant, had formerly been inhab- 
ited, and that these various plants had been left to themselves by the 
removal or extirpation of a former agricultural people, and had in the 
lapse of ages, become degenerated for want of man's fostering care. 

C. E. BOYLE. 



(ji THE WHEAT PLANT. 

has monument-like perpetuated the memory of the event ; 
but nowhere do we find the plant growing " wild." 

One class of theorists assert that the character of any plant 
can not be permanently changed by the agency of man, and 
insist that it is a matter of notoriety that young plants inherit 
even the most trifling peculiarities of their parents. There is 
no doubt that the varieties in cultivated crops owe their exist- 
ence chiefly to this physiological law. The Hunter's wheat 
of which so many thousands of acres are now cultivated in 
Scotland, have all sprung from one single plant found acci- 
dentally by him years ago, and all of it that has since been 
grown has exactly lesembled its first parent. So also the Lam- 
bert w 7 heat and other varieties in this State. In like manner 
the valuable Potato Oat had its origin in one oat plant found 
in a potato field ; and to this day the variety is distinguished 
by the long straw, the large spikes and the early maturity of 
its ancestor. The Turnip, the Cabbage, the Cauliflower, the 
Broccoli, the Kail and others are all descended from different 
accidental varieties of the Brassica oleracea, and each variety 
keeps up in our gardens its peculiarities, thus establishing the 
hereditary transmission of* qualities in plants. There are 
however many exceptions to this rule, at least to a certain ex- 
tent. If we take the finest pippin and plant its seeds, we are 
almost certain to raise the wild crab-apple tree ; all the broc- 
colis, cauliflowers, turnips, etc., if left for a time to a state of 
nature, sow seeds which produce the insignificant wild sea-kail; 
and as for wheat, if not cultivated it ceases to exist; hence 
these theorists further assert that in cases wherein changes 
have been produced, except the exciting cause of the change 
be unremitted in its application, that the plant would degen- 
erate and revert to the original type, and indicate the " volun- 
teer rice " as an example. Lest the reader may not under- 
stand the term volunteer in this case I will endeavor to explain 
it: The rice seed that are shed when the crop is cut, and lie 
over the winter, produce an inferior quality of grain, for 
under these conditions they appear to revert to their original 



ORIGIN OF CULTIVATED PLANTS. 65 

or natural state. Notwithstanding the husk of the volunteer 
rice is of the same light yellow color as that of the finest 
quality, the kernel is red. This class of theorists advocate the 
permanency of species in nature. Hence it is by no means 
surprising that they should insist that wheat is a permanent 
species, and point for corroboration of their position to the 
fact that wherever it has been found growing spontaneously 
that it preserves all the characteristics of the cultivated 
varieties. 

The opposing class of theorists assert that it is a well estab- 
lished fact that from a veritable pigmy — a small plant with 
scanty leaves, weighing altogether scarcely half an ounce, has 
been produced the monstrous cabbage ; a diminutive little root 
growing wild in Chili has been metamorphosed into the ines- 
timable potato ; the sweet, juicy Altringham carrot, weighing 
from five to six pounds, is, in a wild condition, a dry, slender 
root, unfit to eat ; the delicate, well flavored Vienna Glass Cauli 
Bapi, as large as a man's fist, is, when wild, a slender, woody, 
dry stem ; the cauliflower in its natural locality is a thin 
branched flowering stem, with little green, bitter flower-buds; 
that the luscious peach has been derived from the hard shelled 
almond can no longer be successfully denied ; and that the 
small black sloe has been transformed into the juicy and golden 
yellow Gage is equally indisputable. The most delicious Spit- 
zenbergs and Pippins owe their origin to the diminutive, 
acrid crab-apple. 

Professor Henslow's experiments rather confirm the doc- 
trine held by the advocates of the " progressive development " 
theory, or rather those who hold that species are not immuta- 
ble, but are susceptible of being changed and more fully 
developed by man's agency, climate, soil, and position. In a 
paper which he read before the British Association, he proved 
that the Centurea nigra, Black Knapweed, and C. Nigrescens, 
Dark Knapweed, could be so cultivated as to pass completely 
into one another. He cited instances also proving that the 
species of Rosa, Primula, Primrose and x\ngallis Pimpernelle 
6 



66 the wheat plant. 

passed completely one into the other; so that instead of three 
species, there should be three varieties of one species. It is 
now a demonstrable fact that the garden daisy is none other 
than the wild or woodland daisy cultivated ; although the 
botanists yet retain the specific terms of Bellis pererinis and 
B. sylveslris, as though there really were (as was formerly 
supposed) two species. Future botanists will in all proba- 
bility demonstrate that raspberries, blackberries and dewberries 
are after all not three distinct species, but merely three vari- 
eties of one and the same species. 

If, then, such astonishing results, as the changes just enu- 
merated certainly are, have been effected through the agency of 
man, climate, and locality, is there any good reason for sup- 
posing that wheat, through cultivation and consequent influ- 
ences, may not have become so transformed, and yet so per- 
manent and characteristic in its transformation as to render it 
exceedingly difficult, even to the skillful and accomplished 
botanist, to distinguish it on the same soil as the legitimate 
offspring of those plants which formerly grew there spon- 
taneously? 

It is not claimed by either party of the theorists alluded to 
in the foregoing paragraphs, that an onion, by any means now 
known, can be changed into an apple tree ; or that cherries 
can be grown on currant bushes ; but while the one party 
denies that soil, climate, position or culture, or all these com- 
bined, can produce any thing more than temporary alterations 
in form, the opposing party unhesitatingly declare that soil, 
climate, position and culture are capable of producing perma- 
nent changes, and that the plants so changed have the power 
of transmitting the acquired characteristics. 

VARIETIES OF WHEAT. 

There is perhaps no fact connected with the wheat plant 
better established, than that it, by climate, soil and culture, 
may be much modified or changed. It would be requiring 
greater credence than the public are prepared to allow, were 



CHANGES IN PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 67 

we to assert unqualifiedly that red, bearded wheat could be 
changed into white, smooth wheat ; yet incredible as this ap- 
pears to be, it is nevertheless true. There are instances on 
record of red wheat being changed into white, and of beard- 
less having been derived from bearded ; — these changes or 
modifications are not sudden, or the freaks of nature, but are 
the result of the continued influences of surrounding circum- 
stances. The wheat plant is not the only plant whose quali- 
ties are affected by climate, soil and culture, neither is the 
vegetable kingdom alone subject to these influences. While 
it is an indisputable fact that Europeans have lived for many 
generations among the Kaffirs and Hottentots, as well as with 
African tribes nearer the equator, yet hundreds of years have 
failed to change the delicate carnation on the Circassian's 
cheek into the ebony of the negro — or to metamorphose the 
long, straight, dark brown hair into the black wool. The 
Dutch families who settled in Southern Africa 300 years ago, 
are now as fair, and as pure in Saxon blood as the native 
Hollander; the slightest change in structure or color can- at 
once be traced to intermarriage ; but Saxon sheep being re- 
moved to the torrid zone, in a few generations the fine, soft, 
compact and valuable fleece is supplanted by a coarse, sparse, 
shaggy hair ; and it is now generally admitted that the orig- 
inal Saxon sheep were exceedingly coarse. In Mexico, the 
dog and the horse, both, in the course of several generations, 
become almost hairless, and instead of the hair have a skin 
not very unlike that of the elephant. In the torrid zone the 
bee does not lay up a store of honey — it provides sufficient 
only to feed the new brood. 

There is reason to believe that plants, through the influences 
of soil (their food) and climate undergo as great changes as 
does the animal kingdom ; one of the best established evi- 
dences of which is, that cotton grown in a certain district in 
China is of a nankin color, but when the seeds are brought 
to America and planted they produce the usual white cotton. 



GS THE WHEAT PLANT. 

It is said that the peach in its original soil was a virulent 
poison, and that the Persian warriors brought to Persia some 
of the seeds and planted them for the purpose of poisoning 
the points of their arrows, so as to render wounds caused by 
them to be fatal, but a change of climate and soil produced a 
fruit which is not only luscious, but is esteemed exceedingly 
healthy.* 

It is a tolerably well established fact that continued culture 
of the same variety of wheat in the same place, will consider- 
ably modify or improve its qualities.")'" The instance related 
by a gentleman, of red Mediterranean wheat changing into 
white is not the only one of the kind which has come to my 
knowledge, but is, perhaps, the best authenticated. 

An excellent farmer communicates the following : 

" I regard the Mediterranean wheat as earlier than most 
other varieties, especially when grown on heavy soil. I have 
known it to ripen more than a week earlier than the red bald 
or the Canada flint, and think it less liable to the ravages of 
the weevil. I am aware that it does not yield as greatly as 
some other varieties, when we are fortunate enough to have 
them to do well ; but as a general thing, I think it by far the 
safest for a crop. Three-fourths, if not nine-tenths of the 
wheat raised in this county is the Mediterranean variety. As 
to its value now, I view it as quite different from v:liat it was 
when first grown here. I have the testimony of our millers as 
well as my own experience, to sustain me in saying that this 
wheat yields a greater and better quality of flour than it did 
ten years ago, in this section at least." 

Modifications of this kind, requiring many years to consum- 
mate them, may no doubt have been observed by others who 
have never communicated their observations in such a manner 
as to find their way into print; while, on the other hand, very 

* Transactions of the Russian Economical Society. 

t See Old Red C haff— bearded, in list of varieties of wheats. 



"DOES WHEAT TURN TO CHEAT?" 69 

many statements, purporting to be observations, have found 
their way into print much to the prejudice of the progress of 
agricultural science. 

There is no doubt that culture, climate and soil, will modify 
the appearance of plants, to such an extent, in many cases, 
that the casual observer may be persuaded that an entire me- 
tamorphosis has taken place. From hasty observations, 
equally hasty inferences are generally made, and false conclu- 
sions are the result. One of these pseudo observations is the 
supposed transformation of wheat into chess or cheat, or, 
botanically, Brumus sccalinus. 

The advocates of this supposed metamorphosis claim that 
excessive moisture, and cold in the spring months, produce 
the change ; another party of supposers claim that pasturing 
in the spring will cause the change ; while a third party claim 
that hauling with a wagon over the field, after seeding, will 
change into chess every grain which has been so unfortunate 
as to have been passed over by any one of the wheels. It re- 
quires a greater faith in the susceptibility of species to be 
transmuted than I ever have been favored with, and requires 
more evidences than yet have been corroborated by examples 
in the vegetable kingdom, to induce me to believe that under 
any conceivable circumstances wheat can be transformed into 
chess. I will, in as brief a manner as possible, state my reas- 
ons for withholding assent to the cheat doctrine. 

I. Although climate, soil and culture may modify or im- 
prove given species of plants or animals, yet it does not 
change one species into another. The pine of Norway, when 
removed to Mexico, does not become a chestnut, nor the Saxon 
sheep become a goat, although the character of both pine and 
sheep are modified ; yet when the sheep is returned to Saxony 
it re-assumes its original characteristics ; and although wheat, 
in all probability, is derived from iEgilops, there is a far 
greater identity in the general, as well as in the botanical 
characteristics of both these plants, than there is between 
wheat and any other plant. 



70 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

II. Cucumbers, melons and pumpkins have more general 
and botanical characters in common than wheat and chess, 
yet who has ever claimed that cucumber-seed produced mel- 
ons, and that these melons in turn produced pumpkins f There 
is no well authenticated case on record of as complete a 
transformation of one species into another as is claimed in the 
case of wheat changing into chess. 

III. Like produces like ; climate, soil and culture may in- 
crease the size, or improve the quality of this product, but 
generic character can never be changed. The improved short- 
horn bull of to-day is an animal differing in outline perhaps 
from the " ring -streaked and speckled" cattle of antiquity ; but 
he can not be changed into a giraffe, elk, deer, nor horse. 
There is far greater resemblance between oats and chess, than 
between wheat and chess. The wheat produces a head or 
spike, chess produces a diffuse and spreading top or panicle, 
as distinct and different from the wheat-spike as is a Morgan 
horse from a Rocky Mountain goat. There is no well authen- 
ticated case on record of any parent producing so unlike a 
progeny ; neither is there any record of so great a transforma- 
tion having taken place by the most exact conformity to 
known laws, and the most unremitting care and attention 
during a century, as is claimed by the wheat-transmutation 
advocates. 

IV. The law, influence, or circumstances, must necessarily 
affect all within its reach — if it can possibly change a single 
one, it must operate on all similarly situated to the one 
changed. In Ohio we have generally about eight inches of 
rain in April and May ; in 1858 we had eight and a quarter 
inches in the month of May alone, and fully half as much in 
April ; if, then, excessive moisture is the cause of the trans- 
mutation, the entire wheat crop of 1858 in Ohio should have 
been transmuted. But the advocates of the theory may claim 
that so extensive an application is taking too great a license 
with their doctrine ; we will, therefore, confine ourself to a 
square foot of ground which is perfectly level, and the soil is 



WHEAT DOES NOT CHANGE TO CHESS. 71 

of the same quality, as well in mechanical as in chemical com- 
position, as possibly may be found anywhere on a similar 
area. On this square foot was found wheat and chess growing 
in the following order : 



c. 


w. 


w. 


c. 


w. 


c. 


w. 


w. 


c. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


c. 


c. 


0. 


c. 


w. 


c. 


c. 


w. 


w. 


w. 


c. 


w. 


w. 


w. 



To be sure they did not grow in such precise regularity as 
above indicated, but they all grew on the area above men- 
tioned, and in the relative position, as marked by the initials 
above — C. being Chess and W. Wheat. What law in nature 
could possibly transmute one-half of the wheat stalks in the 
upper- lino, one-sixth of the second row, one-third of the 
third, two-thirds of the fourth, and one-third of the fifth, 
when the topography was precisely the same, the soil the 
same, the moisture and atmospheric influences precisely the 
same? The truth is, no transmutation ever took place; all the 
chess found in grain fields is the direct product of chess seeds. 
This announcement may possibly startle some of those who 
hold that chess is deaf, or produces husks or chaff only ; but 
they have never examined the flower of the chess, nor sub- 
mitted the reproductive organs of this plant to microscopic 
investigation. Chess has as perfect a flower as wheat has, 
and produces a grain capable of germination, and thus re- 
produces and perpetuates its species. The husk or chaff 
of chess is very thick, and protects the albuminous body 
for several years from decay when it is too deep in the earth. 

Every farmer must have observed in spring time, in pasture 
fields or meadows, where cattle had been during the autumn, 
that wherever there were droppings from the cattle, the grass 
appeared to have a thriftier growth, so much so that the num- 
ber of droppings could be counted as so many green hillocks 
many rods distant. All the plants, whether clover, timothy, 



72 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

red-top, June or orchard grass, whose seeds or roots came 
within the influence of the dropping, were affected by it ; they 
all grew larger and greener than the grasses not so affected ; 
but the clover was not converted into timothy or red-top, nor 
June grass into clover or timothy. Neither does the manure 
affect the timothy and not other grasses, but affects all alike. 
Therefore, if any influence operated upon the square foot of 
soil above referred to, it must have changed all the wheat on it 
into chess, if it possibly could have changed a single grain. 

Chess requires considerable moisture to induce it to germi- 
nate, hence it is found most abundantly in moist places ; here 
it grows more rankly than wheat does, and in a short time 
overshadows and chokes the wheat, and the careless observer 
seeing chess abundant about harvest where wheat plants ap- 
peared in the spring, concludes that the one has been trans- 
formed into the other. 

The thick hull or chaff of the chess protects the albumin- 
ous body from the operation of digestion in the craw of birds, 
or stomachs of horses or cattle. Birds passing over wheat 
fields may drop chess seeds, and from the droppings of horses 
and cattle, chess seeds may germinate ; hence it is not uncom- 
mon to find chess growing about stumps and logs in newly 
cleared lands. 

A late revival of the transmutation controversy induced 
Benj. Hodge, Esq., of Buffalo, N. Y., to offer a premium of 
one hundred dollars to any one who should prove that wheat 
had turned to chess — the premium to be awarded under the 
supervision of a committee appointed by the N. Y. State Agri- 
cultural Society. The premium was claimed by Samuel David- 
son of Greece, Monroe Co., New York. The Society appoint- 
ed a committee of investigation consisting of Prof. Dewey, 
Rochester, N. Y., Chairman, who reported the following as the 
result of the examination : 

" The experiment to prove the transmutation was the fol- 
lowing. A quantity of earth was passed through a fine 
sieve, to separate all chess seeds. It was placed in a pan and 



REPORT ON WHEAT TURNING TO CHESS. 73 

several heads of wheat planted in it. When the wheat came up 
it was subjected to all the hard treatment that usually produ- 
ces winter-killing, viz. : flooding with water and alternately 
freezing and thawing for several tinges. Late in the spring 
the whole contents of the pan were removed and set out in the 
open ground. When the plants of wheat threw out their 
heads there appeared chess heads also. This mass of wheat 
and chess plants was brought in and placed before the com- 
mittee. Stalks of chess were shown, the roots of which were 
found to proceed directly from the planted heads of wheat 
which yet remained entire, and in some instances they were 
found to issue from the half decayed grains of wheat them- 
selves.* This was looked upon as conclusive. 

" The roots were taken by the committee and first soaked in 
water and afterward gently washed, by moving them back- 
ward and forward slowly through it. They were then care- 
fully examined by microscope. The roots of the chess were 
now perceived to issue, not from near the end of the grain of 
wheat as is usual in sprouting, but from the side, and in 
fact from almost any part. Further examination showed 
that they merely passed through crevices in the decayed 
wheat grains, and that they were separated from the 
grains without tearing, being merely in contact, without 
adhesion or connection. Some of the more minute chess 
fibers were observed by an achromatic microscope to ex- 
tend over the inner surface of the bran, where they had 
gone in search of nourishment (which is known to abound 
just within the bran) in the same way that grape roots have 
been observed to spread over the surface of a rich decaying 
bone. But they easily separated and had no connection with 
the bone. It was satisfactorily proved that the chess plant 
could not have come from these grains, by the fact that the 

* When the wheat is in head no trace of the original grain can be 
found — the contents of the wheat grain are entirely consumed by the 
young plant at the expiration of 30 days from the time of sowing. Prof 
Dewey is evidently mistaken in the above statement. — Klippart. 

7 



74 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

same single stalk of chess was thus connected with five or six 
different grains which could no more have originated it, than 
five or six cows could have one calf. The examination 
therefore did not prove any thing in favor of transmutation, 
and as there were many possible ways in which the chess 
might have been scattered on the soil, the whole experiment 
was admitted by all parties to be inconclusive." 

If farmers will habitually sow clean seed, there is little dan- 
ger that they will be troubled with chess. 

There is another fact which it would be well to remember 
in controversies on subjects of this nature, viz. : all species, 
and not unfrequently genera which are allied will hybridize, 
that is, will produce offspring partaking of the nature of both 
parents, yet not resembling either in every respect ; thus the 
horse and ass are allied species of the Equine genus, they hy- 
bridize and produce the mule.* Wheat and chess will not 
hybridize, thus proving conclusively that there is neither spe- 
cific nor generic affiliation existing between them. 

Wheat may at different periods have been produced -from 
the iEgilops in various countries ; in India, Persia, Egypt, 
Greece, California, South America, etc., and the different vari- 
eties may have been derived from the originals from the various 
localities having been modified by soil, climate and culture. 

Experience teaches that by high culture red wheats change 
into white ones, and although we have no direct evidence that 
bearded or awned wheat changes into beardless, yet the French 
Journal d'Agriculture Pratique, speaks very highly of a beard- 
ed wheat which loses all its beards the moment it ripens. 

Mr. Daniel has introduced on the farm of Barliere (Haut 
Loire) a variety of white wheat from Russia, which merits 
attention. A small sheaf of it was on exhibition at the 
World's Fair. It is said to be very productive, and to make 
an excellent quality of second-rate bread, such as is in gen- 
eral use by the agricultural population. 

* See Chapter I, where hybridization is more fully discussed. 



CLIMATE PRODUCES CHANGES. 75 

The spike or head of the wheat is stout and long, the awns 
or beards are very long, and drop off the very moment that the 
grain is matured. The chaff is thick and coarse, and protects 
the grain from many attacks to which the thinner chaffed va- 
rieties are subjected. The grain is large, white, and very 
heavy. It is cultivated by the farmers in the vicinity of 
Brionde, without extraordinary manuring, or other care, and 
the harvest generally yields 38 to 44 bushels per acre. It 
succeeds best in good soil, but is not susceptible of withstand- 
ing great extremes of cold, more particularly the cold of 
humid and insalubrious districts ; although it appears not to 
have been affected by the cold of last December. The straw 
is long, heavy, and of a remarkable whiteness. 

It is by no means improbable that in some localities, the 
Mediterranean has, since its introduction into the United 
States, lost the awns or beards, and is now known as the 
beardless, or smooth, red Mediterranean. In localities where 
climate and soil more readily affect changes than culture, the 
smooth, red Mediterranean may have become white. If the 
same variety of wheat were sent to Canada, Central Ohio, 
Tennessee, and California, from Norway or Denmark, and the 
wheat thus sent be cultivated on the same farm for a period 
of fifty successive years in each of the localities just men- 
tioned, there is no doubt that at the expiration of this period, 
if a comparison were to be instituted, the varieties would be 
found to differ greatly from each other, and all differ from the 
original, not only in appearance, but in quality. And, more 
than all, while that in Canada ripens there the first of August, 
that in Tennessee the first of June, that in California the 
tenth of May, that in Central Ohio will not ripen before the 
first of July. If, then, imports be made of the identical va- 
riety to Ohio from Canada and Tennessee, and sown side by 
side with that already acclimated in Ohio, it will be found 
that that from Canada will ripen a few days earlier, and that 
from Tennessee a few days later than that of Ohio. Even in 
the limited extent of latitude embraced between Lake Eric on 



76 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the North, and the Ohio river on- the South, there is an ap- 
preciable modification in the same variety of wheat. A spike 
of Mediterranean grown in Trumbull county differs as much 
in appearance from a spike of the same variety grown in Law- 
rence or Scioto, as it does from a spike of " old red chaff" or 
of " Quaker wheat." 

So well is this fact understood by botanists, that Prof. John 
Lindley remarked of the wheats on exhibition at the Crystal 
Palace in 1851 : 

" I have already said, that among the wheats produced in 
the Exhibition, that from our South Australian colonies is 
the best — that it is much the best. And here let me make a 
remark on that subject. It has been supposed that all we 
have to do in this country, in order to obtain on our English 
farms wheat of the same quality as this magnificent Australian 
corn, is to procure the seed and sow it here. There can not 
be a greater mistake. The wheat of Australia is no peculiar 
kind of wheat ; it has no peculiar constitutional characteris- 
tics by which it may be in any way distinguished from wheat 
cultivated in this country; it is not essentially different from 
the fine wheat which Prince Albert sent to the Exhibition, or 
from others which we grow or sell. Its quality is owing to 
local conditions, that is to say, to the peculiar temperature, 
the brilliant light, the soil, and those other circumstances 
which characterize the climate of South Australia, in which it 
is produced ; and, therefore, there would be no advantage 
gained by introducing this wheat for the purpose of sowing it 
here. Its value consists in what it is in South Australia, not in 
what it would become in England. In reality, the experiment 
of growing such corn has been tried. I myself obtained it 
some years since for the purpose of experiment, and the result 
was a very inferior description of corn, by no means so good 
as the kinds generally cultivated with us. And Messrs. Heath 
and Burrows, in a letter which I have received from them 
this morning, make the same remark. They say, ' For seed 
purposes it has been found not at all to answer in England, 



CLIMATIC 



INFLUENCES. 



77 







the crop therefrom being 
ugly, coarse, and beard- 
ed.' The truth is, as was 
just observed, the pecul- 
iarities of South Austra- 
lian wheat are not consti- 
tutional, but are derived 
from climate and soil. It 
appears, therefore, that 
wheat may be affected by 
climate, independently of 
its constitutional peculi- 
arities ; but it does not 
follow that wheat is not ~ 
subject to constitutional 
peculiarities like other 
plants. There are some 
kinds of wheat which, do 
what you may with them, 
will retain a certain qual- 
ity, varying but slightly 
with the circumstances 
under which they are produced ; as, for example, is proved by 
some samples here, especially of Revitt wheat, of a very fine 
description, exhibited in the building by Mr. Payne, and 
which is greatly superior to the ordinary kinds of Revitt that 
appear at market. This clearly shows that Revitt wheat of a 
certain kind and quality is better than Revitt wheat of a dif- 
ferent kind, both being produced in this country ; so that, 

Fig. 7. Section of a wheat grain highly magnified. 

a. a. cellular layers of the first seed skin. 

b. same of the second. 

c. the third or innermost skin. 

d. cells of gluten. 

e. the cellular tissue of the albumen with grains of starch meal. 
/. grains of starch. 




78 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

circumstances being equal, we have a different result, owing 
to some constitutional peculiarity of race." 

The principal difference between red and white wheat exists 
in the amount of gluten and silex, or cortaceous (bran) sub- 
stances. Gluten (d. Fig. 7.) is found to be two or even three 
times as thick in some varieties, as in others. It is thinnest 
in white wheat, medium in amber, and thickest in coarse, 
heavy red wheats. The skins (a. a. b. Fig. 7) abound in silex 
to a greater extent in red than in white wheats. But climate, 
soil and culture, modify the amount of gluten and silex, as 
well as other characteristics of the plant, and thus produce 
new varieties. 

There are many varieties of wheat now cultivated in this 
State which owe their origin to some peculiar, and perhaps 
local influence. There are several cases on record where the 
same variety has been habitually cultivated on the same farm 
for many years, when suddenly a strange head is found mak- 
ing its appearance in the field. This head not unfrequently 
is larger and presents other indications of being an excellent, 
if not superior variety of wheat. Where did it come from ? 
The farmer has not been changing the variety of wheat, and 
why is there a single head only, or half a dozen heads at 
most? If there were a square yard or more covered with the 
new variety, one might suppose that the product of any entire 
head had been sown, or by some fortuitous circumstance had 
found its way there. It is idle to suppose that birds of pas- 
sage might have dropped it in their migration ; because, in the 
first place, it is probable that the germinating qualities would 
be destroyed at least, if not the entire grain be digested; but 
because, if birds did convey it there, they must have obtained 
it somewhere, within a few days' flight of the place where it 
was dropped, and the variety of wheat would be recognized as 
coming from the North, South, East or West. Notwithstand- 
ing the improbability of new varieties being introduced in the 
manner just mentioned, the theory is entitled to due consid- 
eration. The advocates of this theory assert that the birds 



THE VARTO'-" THEGKJJ >J. 79 

which convey the grains, proceed from the North to the South, 
and bring the grain from the North. The Northern varieties 
are more hardy than those acclimated here, and not so readily 
digested by the birds. The birds wing their way to the South 
at the approach of winter, when deep snows cover the ground 
and thus hide their accustomed food, in the far North ; and 
the seeds dropped by them on our grain fields germinate 
before the cold of winter has actually set in. 

It is true that any variety of wheat taken South any con- 
siderable distance from its accustomed locality, will not only 
increase in size, but present a more vigorous and hardy ap- 
pearance than that already acclimated. Hence the plausibility 
of the " bird theory." 

Another party of theorists assert that the grain or grains 
which produce new and superior varieties, have accidentally 
fallen in places the soil of which is of peculiar chemical com- 
bination, or whose mechanical structure differs from the 
remainder of the soil, upon the same principle that grass 
growing under the droppings from animals in pasture fields, 
obtains elements and ingredients if not different in combina- 
tion from those in the soil generally, yet in much greater 
proportion ; that these incidental peculiarities of soil, produce 
characteristic changes in the structure and appearance of the 
plant. The advocates of this theory refer to the experiments 
of Salto-Itorstniarr. which are given in another place in this 
book, as being collateral, if not conclusive evidence, of the 
correctness of their position. 

A third party ascribes the origin of varieties to hybridiza- 
tion. It is very evident that wheat does not naturally hybrid- 
ize, because if it did ' ; niix" as readily as can corn, sorghum 
siecliurntura. or lolium pereiine, the agriculturist could produce 
at pleasure, the most desirable varieties in vast quantities in a 
single year. Were it true that wheat hybridizes in the field 
without the agency or interference of man, then, to find 
grains of a dozen different varieties in the same head or spike 
of wheat, might be regarded as the rule, and a head in which 



80 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the grains were all of the same variety would be the exception, 
yet how often do we find half a dozen varieties of wheat, 
sowed in the same field and growing side by side for succes- 
sive years, preserving and perpetuating their characteristics, 
without the least appreciable change due to hybridization. 

It must be obvious that wheat harvested in an unequal state 
of ripeness, can not be the best for the purpose of making 
bread, as when the greater part of the grain has been cut in 
the state the farmer considered fitted for the miller, while the 
lesser part has been either in a milky state, or much over-ripe, 
or some in all possible stages of ripeness. 

The greatest quantity of flour is not obtained from wheat 
cut in this manner, but would be obtained when every ear 
produced that fine, plump, thin-skinned, coffee-like looking 
germ, and a delicate, transparent, thin-coated bran. Hence 
it is assumed, that to have the best bread from any variety of 
wheat, is to have it so pure, that, supposing it to be grown en 
a level space, with one exposition, it will all ripen at the same 
time ; slight differences being allowed for variation of soil, 
sub-soil, or accidental unequal distribution of manure ; but, 
that as a general thing, it will ripen equally. I must here 
observe, that the cause why so much wheat appears to have 
many shriveled, lean, ill-grown grains in it, arises often from 
the unequal growth of the many varieties that lurk in the 
purest crop. No writer has yet, I believe, directed the atten- 
tion of the agricultural world to the cultivation of the pure 
sorts, originating from one single grain. It is contended that 
this has been the root of all evil ; many have attempted to 
begin well, but few, if any, have thought of commencing from 
the original, and persevering and keeping it pure. 

I am well aware that many may consider this project vision- 
ary and unattainable. It has been asserted that if even a 
pure crop were sown, the bees would mix the farina, mice 
would mix the grains, birds would do the same, and more 
than all, if it had been feasible, it would have been done 
long ago. 



EFFECTS OF HYBRIDIZING. 81 

It is of paramount importance to ascertain and keep note 
of the period of flowering of each variety to be cultivated, on 
extensive farms, which will tend more to keeping up a pure 
sort than any other method. 

So far as actual experiments in hybridization with wheat 
are concerned, I can do no better than to quote from the 
excellent lecture of Prof. John Lindley, referred to in a pre- 
ceding page : 

" But this leads to a question which I think of the highest 
interest, and one which has been more distinctly brought out 
in the exhibition that has just closed than it has ever been 
before. We all know the effect of hybridizing, or cross- 
ing the races of animals ; and we also know that within cer- 
tain limits, this may be done in the vegetable kingdom. We 
are all aware that our gardeners are skillful in preparing by 
such means those different varieties of beautiful flowers and 
admirable fruits which have become common in all the more 
civilized parts of Europe ; but no one has paid much atten- 
tion to the point as regards cereal crops. Yet it is to be sup- 
posed, that if you can double the size of a turnip, or if you 
can double the size of a rose, or produce a hardy race of any 
kind from one that is tender, or the reverse, in the case of 
ordinary plants, you should be able to produce the same effect 
when operating on cereal crop. It so happens, however, that 
the experiment has not been tried except on the most limited 
scale, and to what extent it may be carried, has been more 
brought out in this exhibition than it ever was before. In the 
last treatise on this subject by Dr. Grsertner, a German writer, 
who has collected all the information it was possible to pro- 
cure relating to the production of hybrids in the vegetable 
kingdom, the author declares that, as to experiments on cereal 
plants, they can hardly be said to have had any existence. 
The exhibition has, nevertheless, shown us that they have 
been made, and some examples will tell with what result. I 
have no very good means here of explaining such experi- 
ments, but I must advert to them, because they prove dis- 



82 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

tinctly that you may operate upon the constitutional peculi- 
arities of wheat, just as you may upon those peculiarities in 
any other plant. For instance, Mr. Raynbird, of Laverstoke, 
who obtained in 1848 a gold medal from the Highland Society 
for experiments of the kind, sent to the exhibition this box, 
which contains a bunch of Hopetown wheat, a white variety, 
and a bunch of Piper's Thickset wheat, which is red. The 
latter is coarse, and short-strawed, and liable to mildew, but 
very productive. Mr. Raynbird desired to know what would 
be the result of crossing it with the Hopetown wheat, and the 
result is now before us in the form of four hybrids, obtained 
from those varieties. 

" If you will take the trouble to examine them, you will 
see that beyond all doubt the new races thus obtained are in- 
termediate between the two parents — the ears are shorter than 
in the Hopetown, and longer than in the Thickset wheat; in 
short, there is an intermediate condition plainly perceptible 
in them throughout. And it appears from the statement of 
Mr. Raynbird that these hybrid wheats, which are now culti- 
vated in this country, have succeeded to a satisfactory extent, 
yielding forty bushels an acre. Rut in this instance, as in 
some others which I am about to mention, I do not at all 
attach importance to that circumstance. The essential part 
of the question is not the number of bushels produced per 
acre, but to show that you may affect the quality of cereal 
crops as you may affect animals and other plants. Mr. Maund, 
a very intelligent gentleman residing at Rromsgrove, in War- 
wickshire, has done much more than Mr. Raynbird, for he 
has obtained a greater variety of results, which he exhibits 
this evening. Mr. Maund has been occupied for some years 
past in the endeavor to ascertain whether something like an 
important result can not be produced upon wheat by muling, 
and he exhibited the specimens before us in evidence of what 
may be done. You will observe that sometimes his hybrids 
are apparently very good, and sometimes worse than the 
parents, as we know is always the case. When you hybridize 



WHEAT HYBRIDS. 83 

one plant with another, you can not ascertain beforehand with 
certainty what the exact result will be ; but you take the 
chance of it, knowing very well that out of a number of 
plants thus obtained some will be of an improved quality. If 
you examine this glass case you will at once see the results ob- 
tained by Mr. Maund. In each instmce the male parent is 
on the left hand, the female on the right, and the third speci- 
men shows the result of combining the two kinds ; a better 
illustration could not be desired. Here is a hybrid consider- 
ably larger than the parents, and in the next instance one 
considerably shorter and stouter. In another example you 
see a very coarse variety gained between two apparently fine 
varieties; that is, perhaps, a case of deterioration. In another 
instance you have a vigorous wheat on the left, and a feeble 
one on the right, while one, much more vigorous than either, 
is the result. On the other hand we have some anomalous 
cases, in which the effect of hybridizing has been to impair 
the quality.* Now, I think this is a very important case, well 
made out, because the moment you show that by mixing corn, 
as you mix other things, you obtain corresponding results, 
there is no reason to doubt that an ingenious person, occupy- 
ing himself with such matters, will arrive at the same im- 
provements in regard to varieties of corn as have already been 
obtained in the animal kingdom, and in those parts of the 
vegetable kingdom which have been so dealt with." 

The same law of transmission of qualities from parent to 
offspring appears to obtain in the vegetable, as in the animal 
kingdom. It is well known to all cattle breeders that the off- 
spring bears a much greater resemblance to the sire than to the 
dam, while the disposition of the dam rather than that of the 
sire is transmitted. Mr. Maund in his series of experiments 
in hybridizing found that a strong sire and weak female pro- 
duced a much better result than a weak sire and strong female. 
All of No. 8 in the above list were of this latter character. 

* See Chapter I.; near the close. 



84 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The new yarieties thus artificially produced, usually prove to 
be of earlier development and maturity, as well as more pro- 
lific and better adapted to withstand the extreme vicissitudes 
of the climate than either parent. 

The entire practicability of producing new varieties of 
wheat at will, being thus demonstrated, we trust it is not indul- 
ging in too sanguine expectations when we predict that ere 
many years the farmers of Ohio will by this method produce 
the best varieties that the world ever saw. 

There is no doubt that the cultivation of Mediterranean 
wheat would at once be abandoned in Ohio, were there a vari- 
ety of white wheat which would as successfully resist the 
various diseases caused by fly, midge, rust, etc., and which 
would withstand the cold and drought as well. Such a variety 
can undoubtedly be produced by hybridization; and as an ex- 
periment in the proper direction we would suggest that a cross 
be produced between an early plant of the white blue stem, 
and an early one of the Genessee flint, or the Quaker wheat. 
It often happens that the first cross is not what is desired, then 
a cross between this first hybrid and one of the parent races, or 
even a second, or some cross of this kind may result in this 
quality. To demonstrate more fully, suppose a hybrid with 
Genessee flint as male, and white blue stem as female, is pro- 
duced, which we will call the Genessee blue stem, but is not 
desirable, having too much of the characteristics of the orig- 
inal blue stem. Then produce a cross with the same former 
male upon this hybrid, ,and name the result hybrid No. 2. 
Suppose this result to partake yet too much of the blue stem 
characteristics ; produce another hybrid with the same male 
as in the other cases, but with hybrid No. 2 as female, and 
name the product hybrid No. 3 ; this result may now have more 
of the Genessee qualities than are desirable. Then a hybrid 
between No. 2 and 3, will perhaps produce the desired qualities. 

Sometimes it happens that the varieties from which new va- 
rieties are sought to be obtained, will not hybridize with each 
other ; as for example should it prove that the Mediterranean 



IMPORTANCE OF HYBRID WHEATS. 85 

would not cross with Soules wheat, but that a cross from these 
two varieties would combine desirable qualities. When such 
a case occurs, the cross must be made with such as will cross 
with both the Mediterranean and the Soules. The Soules may- 
be crossed upon the Genessee Flint, and this product be 
called No. 1, or Soules Genessee, then Mediterranean may be 
crossed upon the Genessee and the product called No. 2, or Med- 
iterranean Genessee ; then No. 1 (as male) crossed upon No. 2, 
(as female) will produce a hybrid which will be one-half Gen- 
essee, one-fourth Mediterranean and one-fourth Soules ; this 
will be No- 3. This last hybrid will cross with the original 
Soules, and produce a variety that will be three-fourths 
Soules, one-twelfth Mediterranean and one-sixth Genessee ; 
this hybrid will be No. 4. Then No. 3 crossed upon the Med- 
iterranean will produce a variety, being three-fourths Medi- 
terranean, one-twelfth Soules, and one-sixth Genessee ; this 
will be No. 5. Now a cross between the hybrids Nos. 4 and 5, 
will produce a hybrid being five-twelfths Mediterranean, five- 
twelfths Soules, and one-sixth Genessee Flint. This No. 5 
may be crossed back upon either of the parents, and the con- 
sequent hybrids crossed upon each other until all of the Gen- 
essee Flint taint is bred out ; and then the result will be a 
hybrid of two varieties which originally would not hybridize 
with each other. 

There is no doubt that these hybrids are constitutionally 
more susceptible to the influences of heat than the parent vari- 
eties, hence their earlier maturity. There is no reasonable 
doubt that by hybridization many excellent varieties may be 
produced, which, in Northern Ohio, will ripen in ordinary 
seasons not later than the 20th of June, and in Southern 
Ohio, as early as the 10th of June. Were such a variety pro- 
duced, the ravages of the weevil would be set at defiance, the 
rust could not injure it, and many inconveniences experi- 
enced at present would be avoided. 

When the agriculturist deems it advisable to change the va- 
rieties of wheat which he has been cultivating, the new varie- 



86 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ties should be imported from the north. The reason of this 
is very manifest ; the north being colder, requires a longer 
period of time to mature and ripen the grain than it does 
here, consequently the new variety when grown here will ar- 
rive at a maturity and ripen earlier than in the north ; whereas 
in the south a greater degree of warmth obtains and wheat 
ripens earlier than here ; consequently when southern wheats 
are introduced here, they seldom succeed, or are continued by 
the cultivator, but most generally after one or two trials, are 
abandoned. For this reason many of the wheats introduced 
from Europe, through the Patent Office, do not succeed in 
Ohio — they are generally found to be too tender for our win- 
ters, and more liable to "winter-killing," rather than any 
other mMady. The following, from an esteemed correspon- 
dent, is in strict confirmation of the views advanced. The 
extract will be better understood when it is known that the 
Isothermal line of Turkey, and all the northern shore of the 
Mediterranean, is the same as that of Tennessee, Arkansas, etc. : 
" In September, 1855, sowed a package or two of Turkish 
Flint Wheat — mostly winter-killed — harvested a little more 
than the seed sown — this was sown in September, 1856. It 
looked well up to the falling of snow; that went off early in 
February, and every plant was winter- killed, while the Gen- 
essee Flint Wheat, sown by the side of it escaped entirely. 
During the past two seasons, having experimented with five 
kinds of imported winter wheat, received from the Patent 
Office, I found none of them comparable with the Genessee 
Flint. I trust, however, that they have done better further 
south, as some of the samples were very fine* There was one 
variety (from Japanf) with a very red chaff, short chaff, short 

* But even if these varieties were acclimated at the south and proved 
to be excellent varieties, they might not be desirable in Ohio ; they cer- 
tainly would mature and ripen late, thus becoming liable to rust, midge, 
and other maladies incident to the late varieties, as well as being liable 
to winter-kill, and otherwise deteriorate. 

f The Isothermal line of Japan is about the same as that of Tennessee. 



HISTORY OF 'j MEDITERRANEAN " WHEAT. 87 

head and L-traw, that 'blossoms some ten days earlier than any 
other kind I have grown, but it has been mostly winter-killed. 
If it were hardy and productive (and may it prove so further 
south) it would be an invaluable variety for cultivation in 
those sections of country where the midge prevails — fiom its 
carliness it would escape their ravages. - ' 

All the varieties imported from Europe which have become 
standard in Ohio, were brought from high latitudes. The 
most popular wheat at present in Ohio, is the Mediterranean, 
so called, which is of Danish or Norwegian origin, from 
whence it was introduced into Holland, and from the latter 
kingdom into the United States, under the name of " German 
Wheat : " in a short time it was known as the German Fly- 
proof Wheat* then by the singular but indefinite cognomen 
of " Fly-proof Wheat" and lastly, it is now extensively 
known as the Mediterranean variety. The following, from one 
of the " old " volumes of the American Agriculturist, furnishes 
the history of its introduction into the United States : 

"Several years ago (about 1819), an American gentleman 
who was traveling in Holland, while one day dining with a 
number of Hessians, was asked why, with our fine climate 
and soil, we had so often failed in having good wheat crops ? 
He replied that it was doubtless in a great measure attributa- 
ble to an insect which it was supposed was introduced into 
the United States in the wheat sent from Holland during the 
Revolutionary War, for the subsistence of the British army, 
which was known in this country as the Hessian Fly. The 
Hessians admitted that some kinds of wheat in that country 
were liable to injury by insects, but that there was a species 
in very general use that resisted their attacks. The American 
gentleman was presented with some of this, which he brought 
to this country and sowed upon his farm in Delaware. It 

* Fly- Proof or German Wheat. — A gentleman who was supplied by us 
with a part of the lot received from Virginia, informs us that there has 
been a great improvement in the appearance of the grain since its in- 
troduction on his farm. — American Agriculturist. 



88 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

was subsequently introduced into Virginia by James H. Tali- 
aferro, Esq., and its ability to resist the attacks of the fly 
successfully tested. The name Mediterranean, given to this 
wheat has no applicability whatever." * 

The agriculturist will be disappointed in the best variety of 
wheat, if the crops are not kept pure. Not unfrequently is 
there grown in the same field white and red, as well as smooth 
and bearded, side by side. Early and late varieties are mixed 
together, and while one is " dead ripe " and is shedding its 
grains, another variety which occupies perhaps an equally 
large area, is just in the u milky " state. It is very manifest 
that the flour from this mixture can not possibly be as desira- 
ble as that of either variety when pure, and harvested at the 
proper season. 

As there are so many varieties of wheat of similar external 
appearance as even to baffle the most experienced eye, there 
seems to be but one secure method to insure the growth of 
pure sorts of wheat, namely, to grow them from single grains, 
or from single ears, and to follow up the plan, by afterward 
sowing only the produce of the most productive, so as to form 
a stock. A curious but satisfactory proof, which repeated ex- 
periments have confirmed, is that the grains of wheat when 
sown thickly, impart a certain degree of warmth to each other 
and to the soil, which hastens their growth two or three days 
earlier than a single £rrain. 

A knowledge of the precise moment of flowering may prove of 

* Several years since, Mr. M. B. Bateham, of Columbus, Ohio, in- 
troduced several of the choicest varieties of wheat from England, but 
none of them succeeded, because the change in climate was entirely 
too great ; the change in the actual amount of heat could, perhaps, have 
been withstood, had there been no diminution in moisture, but our cli- 
mate is dry as well as hot, while that of England is cool and moist. If 
these varieties had been taken to Canada, where the climate is dry and 
cool, and the temperature the same as in England, there is no doubt 
that they would readily acclimate, and then, when acclimated, if trans- 
ferred to the United States, would perhaps prove a desirable acquisition. 



PURITY OF CROPS. 89 

the greatest importance to an intelligent farmer, there being an 
interval of a week or ten days in the period of flowering of some 
of the sorts. Hence, a judicious selection, with due care as to 
the time of sowing the variety that will soonest come into 
flower, would enable him not only to keep nis crops pure, but 
as they would ripen in succession, enable him also to bring in 
his crops in rotation, as each variety ripens, without being- 
hurried by his whole crop being fit for harvesting at the same 
moment, which is now too often the case. 

A single grain picked up on the high road by chance, and 
perceived to be of an entirely different form and larger in size 
than is generally seen, though sown a week later than the 
other varieties, was the first to ripen and was cut a week earlier 
than other varieties. 

" Two years ago," writes John Le Couteur, "a farmer re- 
quested me to view a very pare crop ; there was no mixture in 
it! In merely walking round the crop, which, in fact, was 
both pure and fine, in common parlance, I selected from it ten 
varieties." A crop of this variety, the Duck's Bill, then origi- 
nally procured from Kiel in the Baltic, which I saw this year 
as a second year's produce, is so intermixed as to make it dif- 
ficult to pronounce what variety it is intended for. The 
Duck's Bill is very subject to shake out from the ear if it is 
over ripe ; and has proved to be only fit for making pastry, as 
it is too tenacious for the purpose of making household bread ; 
hence the necessity of not only having wheat crops pure, but 
of knowing their particular qualities and properties. 

It is very extraordinary that some sub-varieties have a pre- 
disposition to sport, or alter their appearance.* A fine red 

* The following detail is copied from Le Couteur's work on the wheat 
plant : 

But it had escaped him to consider it in its properties, with relation to 
the food of man. This practical view the author took of it, and he de- 
termined to attempt to discover which were the most farinaceous and 
productive varieties, by comparing their characters and produce one with 
another. The usual mode with the generality of farmers is to procure 
any seed, that any neighbor, enjoying the reputation of being a good 
8 



90 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

sort was sown with others, pure apparently, and of three hun- 
dred and fifty ears, the produce of forty-six grains, there were 

farmer, may have to sell. A more intelligent class take care to procure 
their seeds from a distance, to require that it is fine, perhaps even pure; 
they also have thought of changing or renewing their seed occasionally. 
A still more intelligent number having procured the best seed they could 
obtain, of those sorts which observation and experience, have led them 
to know as being best suited to their soil and climate ; having further 
observed, that mixtures in their crops prevented their ripening at the 
same moment, and having endeavored to remedy this defect, by making 
selections by hand, of those varieties which appeared to them to be sim- 
ilar and thus have greatly improved their crops in produce and quality. 
A few farmers have proceeded a step further, and from having observed 
a stray ear of apparently unusually prolific habits, have judiciously set 
it apart, and have raised a stock from it. Hence the Hedge Wheat, 
Hunter's, Bidding's and twenty more that might be named ; but it is con- 
tended that it is not sufficient merely to have grown them pure for a short 
time; it is necessary to keep them permanently so, if after a compara- 
tive examination as to their relative product in grain and meal, they shall 
be proved to be the best; or otherwise to discard them for more valuable 
varieties. 

This was the chief consideration which led me to make comparative 
experiments in order to obtain the best seed. Hence, as a first step to- 
ward improvement, Professor LaGasca having shown me four ears of 
those he considered the most productive, I sorted as many as I could 
collect, of precisely the same varieties, judging by their external 
appearance. Such was my anxiety to attempt to raise a pure crop, that 
in the month of November, 1852, I rubbed the grains from each ear, of 
all the four sorts I had selected, throwing aside the damaged or ill-look- 
ing, and reserving only the plump and healthy. 

The first selection was apparently one wholly of a Dantzic sort — white 
and smooth eared. In the process of rubbing, I was surprised to find 
that, though most of the grains were white, they differed greatly as to 
form, some being round, some oval and peaked, some plump but very 
small, some more elongated, some with the skin or bran much thicker 
than others. There were also many with liver-colored, yellow, and dark 
grains, among the white. 

The second sort was from a square, compact variety of wheat, the 
grains very plump, round, of a coffee-like form, very thin-skinned and 
white. There was a pale red inferiority among it, much thicker skinned, 
but without any perceptible external appearance in the ear. 



le couteurs experiments. 91 

two hundred to the original sort, which were a red, compact, 
hoary or velvety kind, twenty-one ears of a smooth red, 
eighty-six of a whitish, downy appearance, and forty-three 
smooth-chaflfed white ears. 

The third was a downy or hairy variety, one of the " Velovtes" of the 
French, and "Triticum Cceleri ; ' of Professor LaGasca; a velvety or 
hoary sort, which is supposed to be very permanent in its duration, as 
relates to keeping pure. I found, however, that there were a few red 
grains, some yellow, and some liver-colored sorts among this, in small 
proportions it is true, but being of prolific habits, subsequent experience 
has taught, that they would soon have destroyed the purity of the crop 
if cultivated without constant attention. 

The fourth selectiou was from a variety of red ear with yellow grains 
more peaked than the "Golden Drop;" these were all plump and well 
grown, but though of productive habits, afforded less flour and more bran 
than the white wheat varieties. I discovered a red variety among it 
bearing white grains, which I suspect to be very prolific and hardy. I 
gave a sample of it to Sir John Sinclair, who greatly encouraged me to 
prosecute my researches, as being of the highest importance. There 
were also red ears bearing liver-colored grains, but these were chiefly lean 
and ill grown. I generally, but not invariably, found that the grain of 
white wheat was the plumpest, or possessing the greatest specific gravity, 
or largest quantity of meal. The aspect of the grain in that dry season 
led me to think that white sorts of wheat will succeed best on dry soils 
and in warm climates, and that red and yellow, or the darker colored, 
prefer wet seasons or moist soils. 

The care I took in making these selections, and the great number of 
sorts I found, of all shades and colors, forming varieties and sub-varieties, 
that are named by Professor LaGasca, confirmed my conviction that 
the only chance of having pure sorts, was to raise them from single 
grains or single ears. It is but fair to add, that even the pains I took in 
making those first selections, amply rewarded my labors, as the product 
of my crops was increased from an average about twenty-three or 
twenty-five bushels an acre to thirty-four, and since I have raised wheat 
from single ears or carefully selected sorts, I have increased my crops to 
between forty and fifty bushels the acre. Hence, I have no doubt, that 
with extreme care, in obtaining the best and most suitable sorts of wheat, 
land in high tilth, with fine cultivation, may be had to produce sixty 
or seventy bushels the acre. 



92 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER IV. 

ORIGIN OF THE WHEAT PLANT. 

In Sicily, there is a wild grass known to botanists by the 
name of JEgilops ovata. It has been asserted that the seeds 
of this plant may be changed into wheat by cultivation ; and 
that the ancient worship of Ceres, which considered the fields 
of Enna and of Trinacoria as the cradles of agriculture, had 
its origin in this transformation of the native grass. 

The iEgilops are hard, rough-looking grasses, and there 
are several species of them. (See A, a, plate I). 

The rough spiked iEgilops is a native of the Levant, and 
is the only perennial one. 

The Cretan iEgilops is a native of Candia. 

The cylindrical iEgilops is a native of Hungary, while the 
oval spiked and long spiked are natives of Southern Europe 
— mostly, however, from the northern shores of the Mediter- 
ranean — the oval spiked abounds in Italy. The seeds of the 
oval spiked or M. ovata very strongly resemble the seeds or 
grains of wheat, but are much smaller. In the Levant the 
iEgilops is gathered in bunches and burnt, and the roasted 
seeds are used as an article of food. 

It had frequently been asserted that wheat and JEgilops 
were identical species, but no botanist, of any respectability, 
for a moment entertained the belief, from the fact that the 
latter is a miserable grass growing to the hight of nine or ten 
inches only, and in its general appearance, leaves so little 
resemblance to the former, that botanists have unhesitatingly 
classified them as belonging not only to different species, but 
to different genera! Pal de Beauvois, in 1812, in his valuable 
work on the genera of grasses, said that he could discover no 
difference between Triticum (wheat) and the JEgilops. 



/EGILOPS TRIUNCIALIS. 93 

Three kinds of iEgilops are frequently met with in the 
south of France, and in other parts of the Mediterranean dis- 
trict, viz. : JEgilo'ps triuncialis, L. ; JE. ovata, L. ; and jE. 
triaristata, Willd. M. Requien has stated that there is a 
fourth, which he calls M. triticoides ; but this, as will be 
shown hereafter, is only a peculiar form of jE. ovata and tria- 
ristata, both of which produce it. 

1. JE. triuncialis is distinguished from the others by its 
more slender and elongated cylindrical ears. The glume con- 
sists of two equal valves, one with three, the other with two 
awns. The nerves of the valves are seven to ten in number, 
and are, like the awns themselves, covered with asperities. The 
valves of the florets (paleas), also two in number, are mem- 
branous and ciliated at their edge; one of them is terminated 
by three abortive awns. 

The following stems are from thirty-five to forty centim.* 
high ; the leaves are never so long as the spike. The ear 
itself is from ten to twelve centim. in length, and is composed 
of from five to seven spikelets, of which the three lowest are 
fertile, and the rest sterile. The glumes of the spikelets pre- 
sent projecting whitish ribs, varying in number with that of 
the awns which terminate them. 

When the number of these awns is two, the number of the 
ribs of the glume is six or seven ; when the glume has three 
awns, the number of ribs is commonly ten, five strong alter- 
nating with five slender. 

The asperities which have already been stated to cover the 
sides of the glume, and the awns render both rough to the 
touch. 

The seed or grain of this species are one centim. in length, 
horny, slender, not being more than three millim. in circum- 
ference at this largest part. Their upper end is terminated 
by a tuft of whitish silky hair. These grains are of a fine 
yellow color, and become brown when dried ; they are a little 

* 1 millimeter = 0.039 inch, or less than half a line. 1 centimeter 
— 0.393 inch, or nearly four-tenths of an inch. 



94 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

flowery when .broken. When germinating, only two radicles 
are usually produced ; three are rare. 

The plantns glaucous all over. Of all the species we shall 
have to notice, this is capable of being the most highly de- 
veloped. It never produces varieties. 

2. iEgilops ovata, L. (a, 6, Plate I). The glume of this 
species is composed of two equal valves, each of which is ter- 
minated by four awns. The valves are marked with ten or 
eleven projecting nerves, of which six or seven are strong, 
and the others alternating are weak, and often incomplete ; 
all are glabrous, or are furnished with very short hairs ; the 
spikelets which they cover are strongly convex. (B, Plate I). 

Of the two membranous valves, or paleoe, which compose the 
floret, one is terminated by three short awns, and the other 
has no beard, but is slightly ciliated at its apex. (F. Plate I). 

The flowering stems are from twenty to twenty-five centim. 
in hight. The upper leaves never reach the first tooth of the 
axis of the ear. The ear, including the awn, is four centim. 
long; the end of the awn is violet colored. These awns 
spread so as to form nearly a right angle with the axis of the 
ear. The spikelets are four in number, and the two lower ones 
alone are fertile. 

The ears of this species are shorter than those of any other. 
The fruit or grains are much shorter than those of iE. triun- 
cialis. Some are yellow and floury when broken ; the others 
are black and horny. Three radicles are produced when the 
seeds germinate. 

The whole plant is glaucous in appearance, and is thus 
easily distinguished at a glance from the other species. 

3. JEgilops triaristata, Willd., differs from the two species 
just described in the following particulars : the two valves of 
the glume are equal as before, but they are almost always 
terminated by three awns, very rarely by two. The ridges 
and nerves of the valves are less numerous than in iE. ovata 
The valves of the floret, or palese, are membranous, as in the 
other two species ; but one is ciliated at its edge's, and is ter- 



JE. TRIARISTATA, AND vE. TRITK'OI&ES. 95 

minated by two short awns, while the other ha^s no awn, and 
is ciliated at its apex. The awns are nearly vertical. 

The flowering stem of this species are much more erect and 
taller than those of M. ovata ; they are thirty to thirty-five 
centim. in hight. The upper leaves are longer, and almost 
reach the first tooth of the axis. The ears, including the 
awns, are five to six centim. in length, and are composed of 
from four to six spikelets, of which two, and sometimes three, 
are fertile. The nerves of the valves of the glumes are thickly 
covered with short hairs, and are consequently very rough to 
the touch. This species differ from the two preceding — 

1. By the green color of all the parts of the plant. 

2. By the breadth of the valves of the glumes. 

3. By the very dark color which the ears assume when 
ripening. 

4. By the larger size of its corn ; and, 

5. By the surface of the corn, which is covered with a sort 
of brown silk. 

The color of the grain varies, some are yellow, and others 
are dark brown, or nearly black. The grains, when germi- 
nating, produce three radicles. They are floury, but harder 
than those of JE. ovata. 

4. JEgihps friticoides, Req. (c, Plate I). This plant was 
first described by M. Bertoloni. His description is of the 
plant found by Requien in the environs of Avignon and 
Nismes, in 1824, and named by him JE. triticoides. In his 
herbarium there are specimens of the plant, and accompany- 
ing them are the following characters, which he assigned to it. 

Leaves glabrous, grains pubescent. Ear composed of four 
or five spikelets ; this ear is oblong, cylindrical, of the same 
length as that of JE. triuncialis, and of the same size as of 
the ear of JE. triaristata. The spikelets are four- flowered 
and glaucous. (D, Plate I). The valves of the glume are 
nearly glabrous, furrowed, with ribs rough to the touch ; they 
are truncated and have two unequal awns, with one intermedi- 
ate tooth. The exterior valve of the floret (E.) is terminated 



9G THE WHEAT PLANT. 

by an awn nearly as long as, equal to, or sometimes longer 
than, that of the glume. 

There ends the description. Now this JE. triticoidcs of 
Requien, which is by its appearance so easy to distinguish 
from the other species, and is so clearly characterized, is not a 
distinct species ; it is only a particular form assumed under 
certain circumstances, by the two other well-known species 
described above, under the names of iE. ovata, L., and JE. 
triaristata, Willd. 

It is clearly ascertained that this is the case by the fol- 
lowing observations, which can be easily verified by any one 
who will visit Agde in the month of May. It is very likely 
that they may be also verified in the environs of Nismes and 
Avignon, where M. Requien found his JE. triticoides, and 
indeed wherever this form is met with. 

The ears of iEgilops are coriaceous, and remain entire year 
after year without being decomposed ; they merely become 
black as they become old. The grains of these ears do not 
fall from their envelops, but, when arrived at maturity, the 
ears break off" from the top of the stem, fall upon the ground, 
and produce the next year new plants which spring from the 
whole ear ; the spikelets do not separate from the latter, 
nor do the grains drop out from the spikelets. This may be 
seen from the specimens represented in Plate I, A. 

The xEgilops are quick-growing plants ; they germinate 
with the first showers in autumn, and emit, as we have said, 
three radicles from beneath the cotyledon. 

When the ears begin to appear, it may be easily seen that 
the grains inclosed in the spikelets of the old ear on the 
ground produce two kinds of plants (see fig. 1, A.) ; the one 
kind terminating in shorter and more compact ears, and the 
other in ears which are much larger and of a very different 
form. The first are JE. ovata, and the second JE. triticoides. 

The spikelets whose grains exhibit this phenomenon, are 
inserted on the same axis, and are consequently part of the 
same ear, and belong to the same individual plant. 



JE. OVATA PRODUCES M. TRITICOIDES. 97 

The roots of the young plants shoot into the same soil, 
whence they obtain the same alimentary matters ; neverthe- 
less, the individuals called triticoides become the most highly 
developed, and assume different forms in all their parts. 

It is clear from these observations, that the grains of the 
JE. ovata, L., yield two sets of plants, viz. : those described 
under the name of JE. ovata, and those which Requien and 
Bertoloni thought a distinct species, and named JE. triticoides. 
This is not all. Another species of iEgilops, JE. triaristata, 
Willd., also yields the triticoid form, distinguishable, however, 
from that produced by JE. ovata. 

The ears of JE. triticoides, obtained from JE. ovata, are glau- 
cous and many-flowered in their spikelets, have more flowers, 
and are packed closer to each other ; while the ear of JE. tri- 
ticoides, yielded by JE. triaristata, are yellow, sometimes 
become blackish-brown, and are besides alternate flowered, 
and are formed of spikelets with fewer flowers, tolerably dis- 
tant from each other, and so arranged that this alternation is 
very distinct. 

The species of jEgilops are common in the south of Europe, 
and probably in the whole basin of the Mediterranean. They 
inhabit flat, hot, dry plains. I found some of JE. ovata pre- 
senting at the same time both the form characteristic of this 
species and that of the triticoides, in an uncultivated vol- 
canic soil, with a sub-soil entirely of porous lava ; it is the hot- 
test and driest soil of the country, and is known by the name 
of Rocher de Rigand ; around it grow some very weak vines. 

The JE. triaristata presented the same phenomenon as the 
JE. ovata in a very barren, gravelly soil, covered with pebbles. 
The remarkable fact that, under certain circumstances, plants 
approaching Triticum, or wheat, are produced from the two 
perfectly distinct species of iEgilops, lead to the supposition 
that, as has often been presumed, these JEgilops are the wild 
representatives of cultivated grain, and that consequently 
wheat is nothing more than JEgilops modified by the influence 
of soil and climate. 
9 



98 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

It may, moreover, be supposed that the varieties of Triti- 
cum, or wheat, produced by JEt. ovata, are those with glabrous 
ears and fine grains, known to agriculturists by the name of 
Seissette, Touzelle, gkibrous, or bearded, etc., and which varie- 
ties were long since united by M. Dunal into one great class, 
called TouzeUe, and so adopted by M. Seringe, in his excellent 
work on cereals. It may also be presumed that the coarse 
grain, with hairy spikes, known in Languedoc by the name 
of Froment, including Triticum turgidum, and compositum, 
and forming the group called Petansille by M. Dunal, arise 
from M. triaristata, "Willd. It would result from this, that 
the two species of iEgilops which are transformed into triti- 
coides, give rise to two series of distinct varieties, each con- 
sisting of one of the known groups, races, or varieties of 
cultivated wheat. 

Before it had been ascertained by observation, that M. tri- 
aristata presented the same phenomenon as JE. ovata, that is 
to say, yielded plants like Triticum, JE. triticoides derived 
from ovata, was cultivated in the hope of obtaining culti- 
vated wheat, or at least some analogous variety. 

Mons. Esprit Fabre, of the town of Agde (France), made 
a very important discovery, alone, unaided by books, and en- 
tirely without any knowledge of researches or investigations 
in this direction, other than his own. He brought to the 
notice of scientific men a fact which goes far to establish not 
only the mutability of vegetable forms, but' the more import- 
ant fact that wheat is derived from the JEgilops mentioned in 
a preceding paragraph. There is no fact in Natural History 
more pregnant in its consequences to the civilized world 
than this one. The following details of his experiment 
are condensed from the Journal of the Royal Agricultural 
Society : 

" In 1838 he found the grasses of JEgilops ovata and the 
JE. irianistata growing wild in his immediate neighborhood, 
and sowed the seed of the ovata in the fall of the same year. In 
1839 the plants attained a hight of two to two and a half 



esprit fabre's experiment. 99 

feet ; these plants ripened from the 15th to the 20th of July. 
There were very few fertile spikelets or breasts — each having 
one or two grains only, which ripened late ; the remaining 
spikelets were sterile by abortion. The entire crop did not 
produce to exceed in a five-fold proportion ; the grains were 
close, concave, and very hairy at the top. The straw was 
very thin and brittle, the ears deciduous, that is, they broke 
and fell as soon as ripe. Each valve of the glume had two 
arms only, one shorter than the other. In one plant one of 
the arms became abortive, and there only remained one to 
each valve of the glume. On others there were some glumes 
with a long, and others with a short beard. These plants had 
exactly the appearance of Touzelle wheat. In some the 
angles of the rachis, or that portion known as the bach-bone 
of the ear — a continuation of the stem on which the seeds in 
the chaff are attached, were strongly ciliated, or fringed with 
hairs. Sowed seeds obtained from these plants, and 

" In 1840, at harvest, the spikelets were more numerous, 
and contained two grains. The valves of the glumes termi- 
nated in two awns, or beards, of which one was four or five 
times shorter than the other — sometimes reduced to a mere 
tooth only. Fruit — the grains — less compact, less concave, 
and less hairy at the end ; angles of rachis were less ciliated, 
and the ears were somewhat less deciduous. The grains con- 
tained more flour than those of the preceding year. Sowed 
the seeds of these plants, which 

" In 1841 produced ears like those of Triticum (true wheat). 
A very remarkable and important change occurred in this 
crop. There were no barren spikelets, and all of them were like 
wheat in every respect, each one bearing two or three per- 
fectly developed seeds. The contour of the entire plant 
more strongly resembled that of wheat. The seeds were less 
concave and hairy than the preceding year. The valves of 
the glumes had each two arms, one of which was very long, 
while the other was so completely abortive as almost to justify 



100 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the statement that the awns were single. These seeds were 
planted, and 

" In 1842 the plants were attacked by rust. Less progress 
was made than in the preceding year ; the stalks retained 
much of the bitterness peculiar to the iEgilops, the ears were 
remarkable for the small development of awn, and had exactly 
the appearance of the beardless Touzelle wheat. Twenty of 
the ears were entirely sterile. The plants which were not 
affected by the rust had deciduous ears, the awns of which 
were less abortive. Many of the spikelets had three flowers, 
and yielded two or three good grains, which were slightly 
heavy at the apex. These seeds were sown, and 

"In 1843 the plants attained the hight of three feet; the 
straw assumed a more firm and less brittle texture. One of 
the two awns was so short and rudimentary that these valves 
may, with propriety, be considered as having one awn only. 
Each spikelet had two and sometimes three fertile flowers. 
The grains were so well developed that they were exposed 
through the valves of the florets ; the ears were less fragile 
and exactly like wheat in appearance. One of these plants 
yielded 380 grains for the one sown, and another yielded 450 
for one : these grains protruded through their covering. The 
crop had 

H In 1844 all the spikelets fertile and a quantity of them con- 
tained three grains. These grains were visible through their 
envelopes, and were concave on one side ; the spikes or ears 
were deciduous. The valves of the glume had one long awn 
with an exceeding short rudiment of another. 

" In 1845 the crop was adjudged by all to be true wheat ; the 
valves of the glumes had one awn only with a mere tooth of an- 
other. The spikelets had four or five flowers each, three of 
which were fertile. It is now regarded by Mons. Fabre as 
being true wheat, or rather that the iEgilops had been brought 
to its highest state of perfection ; therefore, 

" In 1846 the crop grew in an open field. The field select- 



iEGILOPS CHANGED TO WHEAT. 101 

cd was one near the road leading to Marseillan ; the soil of 
which was called souberbe. The field was inclosed on all sides 
by vineyards. Care was taken to prevent any pollen from 
iEgilops from falling on it. During the four succeeding 
years the yield was six to eight times the seed sown. 

" The character of these plants in 1850 were briefly as fol- 
lows : stems straight, having attained a hight of about thirty 
inches and full of pith* 

" The valves of the glumes terminated in a single awn, the 
rudiment of the other scarcely visible, slightly striated and 
almost hairless. The two valves of the florets were membra- 
nous as in vEgilops, but the exterior one had a single awn 
only, while the other had none. The ears had from eight to 
twelve spikelets, having two or three fertile flowers, and each 
producing two or three grains ; these grains were very floury 

Solid Stem Wheat. — We had an opportunity a few days since of see- 
ing a lot of wheat upon the farm of Dr. Wilson Waters, of Rhode river, 
from which, we presume, upward of a bushel will be reaped — that if we 
mistake not, will be a valuable acquisition: it is the third produce of a 
few grains of seed brought home by our fellow citizen Lieut. Mayo, of 
the United States Navy, and obtained by him upon the plains of Troy, 
in Asia Minor, where he spent some time in visiting a few years ago, 
when the ship on board of which he then served, was in the Archipelago. 
The grains of this wheat are somewhat larger than those of wheat com- 
mon to this country, though perhaps not quite as large as the wheat from 
the mountains of Chili. The stalk is peculiar for being nearly solid, 
instead of hollow, and more tapering than other wheat; the first joints 
being large, and forming a more substantial base. The head has a thick 
stiff beard, not less than six inches in length. It averages about forty 
grains to each head. Forty grains of the former weighed thirty-one 
grains — the same number of the latter weighed but nineteen grains. 
This being the third year that this wheat has vegetated in our climate and 
upon our soil, although but in specimen, we may fairly assume that it has 
been tested and found to answer well. 

It is said to be valuable, more especially from the protection which 
the solidity of its stalk affords from the depredations of the fly, so de- 
structive to other descriptions of wheat. It will also be much less liable 
to fall, we presume, for the same reason. — From the American Farmer, 
Vol. 13, July 22d, 1831. 



102 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and very little concave. The yield of 1850 was less than that 
of the three preceding years ; this diminished product was 
undoubtedly owing to the drought which prevailed that year in 
France." 

After having cultivated 'it for twelve successive years, Mr. 
Fabre says that it has become perfect wheat, and that not a 
single plant has ever reverted to its former character as 
iEgilops. The entire series of this experiment were conduct- 
ed by Mr. Fabre (who is a "simple gardener") in person; 
they were therefore conducted by one who was not only skill- 
ful but eminently a practical man ; one who had a practical 
knowledge of the culture of plants, and not by a theorist or 
amateur deeply interested in obtaining a special result, and 
whose desire of success would induce him to hybridize with 
genuine wheat annually until the iEgilops element would be 
entirely absorbed. Mr. Fabre had the precaution to conduct 
all these experiments in an inclosure surrounded by high walls, 
where was no grain grown anywhere near the inclosure. Mr. 
F's industry would permit no grass to grow on the inside of 
the inclosure. It would be gratuitous to suppose that the 
pollen of wheat in the vicinity could exert any influence on 
these plants,* because the wild iEgilops growing all about 
the edges of the fields, has never had its character changed 
in consequence of the proximity. 

In proof that Mr. Fabre's experiments were real and beyond 
all cavil of being an imposition, Mons. Dunal, Professor of 
Science at Montpelier, one of the most competent men to 
decide such a question, has preserved dried specimens of Fa- 

6* In Abels " Aus der Natur" Vol. 8, page 271, speaking of Fabre's ex- 
periment the writer remarks, " What is more probable than that these 
plants were fertilized by the pollen from true wheat plants in the imme- 
diate vicinity, especially when it is a well known fact that when the 
wheat is in bloom, entire clouds of pollen grains may be seen rising 
from the wheat fields on a clear day ! " Those who have undertaken to 
hybridize wheat will at once know how much reliance may be placed on 
this statement, especially after Gasrtner has testified that the cereals are 
the least favorable of all plants to hybridization. 



PERMANENCY OF WHEAT. 103 

bre's iEgilops, at every stage of its transformation to wheat, 
and offers them as substantial evidences of the fact. 

In whatever light, and from whatever stand-point we may 
view this series of experiments, the result certainly is preg- 
nant with the most important consequences. If wheat is to 
be regarded only as iEgilops, fully and perfectly developed by 
cultivation, then is one position assumed by a party of dispu- 
tants or rather theorists fully affirmed, namely : that plants by 
and through climate, soil, position and cultivation, may per- 
manently change their characteristics. It may however be 
claimed that no observations have been made of the degen- 
eracy of the wheat plant, and for aught that is known to the 
contrary that it in many instances may have reverted to its 
original type and character of IEgilops ; but on the other 
hand we have generally received and accredited records which 
contain sufficient accounts of the wheat plant to justify the 
assertion that it has been cultivated upward of five thousand 
consecutive years, and in all this time there is no instance on 
record of its degeneracy, other than its increased liability to 
disease. An uninterrupted transmission of qualities or char- 
acteristics for the number of consecutive years just mentioned 
must be regarded as approximating permanency — at least for 
all practical purposes. But if on the other hand, wheat must 
be regarded as of an allied genera of the iEgilops, it proves 
that botanists were not sufficiently familiar with the character 
of the plants when the classification was made. 

Mons. Godron, a French botanist, and Mr. Buchinger, a 
German botanist, have both been surprised by, and mortified 
at the result of "simple-minded" gardener's experiments. It 
appears that in a wild state the JEgilops ovata gives rise to a 
variety known by botanists JE. triticoides, which the JS. ovata 
in one of its transformations toward wheat very much resem- 
bles. Upon this resemblance Mons. Godron undertakes to 
impeach the integrity of Mr. Fabre in a lengthy paper which 
he has published, and in which he maintains that JE. triticoides 
is not a condition or variety of JE. ovata, but that it is a hybrid 



104 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

between the ordinary wheat and the latter plant ! Buchinger 
indorses Godron, and directly charges Fabre with hybridizing 
with wheat pollen. In their anxiety to disprove the truth of 
the experiment, all these old-school botanists forget that they 
are acknowledging that wheat and iEgilops will hybridize, 
and the hybrid propagate its kind in direct conflict with the 
generally received opinion on this subject, thus admitting that 
uE. ovata is more closely related to Triticum sativum than 
T. caninum or T. cristatum are, because neither of these latter 
two will hybridize with T. sativum. They forget also that 
they are paying Mr. F. the highest compliment possible in 
acknowledging that by his skill he could produce a hybrid 
between two widely distinct genera of plants, and that this 
hybrid would perpetuate itself. It may be making an asser- 
tion which may perhaps not ultimately be borne out by the 
facts, but there are many indications in the recent develop- 
ments of physiological science, that there can be no fertile 
hybrids except those produced by varieties of the same species 
of plants upon each other. If then this position is found to 
be a tenable one, it follows that in future the genera Triticum, 
or that of iEgilops must be stricken from works on systematic 
Botany. 

It may be well to recapitulate in detail the changes produ- 
ced in the plant itself by Mr. Fabre's culture. In its natural 
state the uE. ovata is glaucous that is, covered with a whitish 
bloom which rubs off, as the surface of a cabbage leaf or a 
plum in all its parts; its flowering stems never exceed nine to 
ten inches in hight ; the upper leaves never reach the first 
tooth of the rachis of the ear ; the last is short and oval, has 
four spikelets only, and of these the two lower ones alone are 
fertile. A variety of the JE. ovata is called jE. triticoides, 
in which one or two of the awns of the ovata disappear, so 
that the valves of the glume of the greater part of the spike- 
lets have only two long awns instead of four in the lower 
spikelets. The outer membranous valve of the floret, instead 
of terminating in three awns, has only one, at the base of 



RECAPITULATION OF CHANGES. 105 

which may be seen the two rudiments of those which are 
wanting. The other membranous valve is without a beard, and 
is fringed at its summit. The ears are formed like those of the 
ovata of three or four spikelets, generally sterile, rarely fer- 
tile. The florets are hermaphrodite, that is containing the 
reproductive organs of both male and female, and inclose 
three stamens around a pistil ending in two long silky stig- 
mas. These florets are often sterile or barren in consequence 
of the abortion of the pistil. The grains of the fertile ones 
are elongated, angular, very concave, and sometimes flattened 
on one side ; color yellow, approaching blackness like that of 
the ovata, but is longer and is silky at the top. When these 
grains were sown and cultivated for the first time they yielded 
plants three or four times as high ; ears were cylindrical and 
much more elongated than those of the parent plant — the 
valves of the glumes had only two awns, one was shorter than 
the other, occasionally one was almost entirely absent, so that 
each glume had one awn only. The awns r»f some plants 
were very long, while others were very short; the plants 
assumed the appearance and characters of Triticum more and 
more. The spikelets more numerous than in the parent plant, 
were often sterile, and the few which were not had one or two 
fertile flowers only, so that the fertile spikelets had no more 
than one or two grains. These grains, the next year, produ- 
ced more perfect plants — their spikelets were more numerous 
than before, and almost all of them contained two fertile 
flowers and yielded two grains. The awns were always two 
in number, but the abortion of one was in every case carried 
further than previously, and often was complete. The grains 
were less compact, less concave, less hairy at their extremity. 
The ears when ripe separated less easily from the axis and the 
grains were each successive year more floury. The third year 
produced plants more perfect than the second — scarcely any 
sterile spikeletr, each of which yielded two and sometimes 
three grains, more developed, less concave and less hairy. 
The fourth year produced no notable change. The fifth year 



106 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

produced plants a yard in length ; grains sufficiently devel- 
oped to separate the valves of the floret and to be wholly ex- 
posed when ripe — mature ears less deciduous. The following 
year all the spikelets were fertile, although the ears separated 
with ease. The next year the ears did not break off easily ; 
all the spikelets were fertile and occasionally inclosed three 
well developed grains, a true Triticum was produced, for cul- 
tivation in the open field for four successive years did not 
cause any change in form, and the product was similar to that 
of other wheat. 

The changes in the form and character of the plant are by 
no means accidental, but are in accordance with a law which 
although but little known, is daily more and more observed 
and acknowledged. The celebrated Dr. Arnott affirms that in 
all the numerous instances of abnormal structures that had 
come under his observation, on at least thirty different genera 
of grasses, the universal tendency of the spikeletwas to elon- 
gate its axis, and increase the number of its flowers ; * but he 
never in one solitary instance observed them to become fewer 
flowered than in the normal state. 

Assuming that Fabre's experiment was successful, the legit- 
imate inference will be that some at least, if not all of the 
cultivated Tritici are peculiar forms of -ZEgilops and should be 
regarded as races of this species. This will reconcile the tra- 
ditions, the vague and disconnected accounts of the origin of 
wheat, which in ancient as well as in modern times, was 
claimed to be found wild in Babylonia, Persia and Sicily. In 
all these countries the JEgilops is a very common plant, and 
some of its species may have accidentally acquired a wheat- 
like appearance. 



*It is well known that the Dahlia, Rose, Chrysanthemum and u^.> 
flowers, all have a tendency to increase not only the number of ijitM 
flowers, but also the petals in each flower by cultivation. 



ANALYSES OF THE WHEAT GRAIN. 107 



CHAPTER V. 

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION OF THE WHEAT GRAIN. 

Scarcely any plant lias been so frequently made the subject 
of analysis as the wheat plant, and no cereal has been anal- 
yzed by so many chemists as has the wheat grain. 

As there are several kinds of analyses, it is important that 
the result of each kind in relation to wheat be placed before 
the reader. Analysis is either qualitative or quantitative ; that 
form of analysis which determines what hind of material 
enters into the composition of any substance is termed qualita- 
tive analysis, but that which determines the amount of each 
ingredient is termed quantitative. 

The simplest qualitative analysis to which wheat may be 
subjected is a mechanical one, viz. : grinding in a mill ; by 
this operation is obtained flour and bran. From either the 
flour or bran further qualitative analyses may be made and the 
result will be starch, gluten, etc. It is always desirable to 
obtain quantitative as well as qualitative analyses. One hun- 
dred pounds of the wheat grain, flour, and bran analyzed 
according to the methods just named is as follows : 

QUALITATIVE. QUANTITATIVE. 

Wheat. Flour. Bran. 

Water 14.83 

Gluten 19 At\ 13.04 20.0 

Albumen 0.95 / 

Starch 45.99 73.20 

Gum 1.52 4.20 28.8 

Sugar 1-50 6.6 

Oil 0.87 2.1 5.5 

Vegetable fiber 12.3 45.7 

But when chemists analyze organic substances as wheat for 
example, they first burn it in order to reduce it to ashes. The 



108 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

parts given off by the process of burning are gases, but the 
ashes contain all the earthy substances of which the material 
was composed. From the ashes of 100 pounds of wheat are 
obtained, according to the variety of wheat, from one and a 
half to two pounds of ashes, which the chemist says are com- 
posed of 

Potash 29.97 per cent 

Soda 3.90 " 

Magnesia 12.30 " 

Lime 3.40 " 

Phosphoric acid 46.00 " 

Sulphuric acid 0.33 " 

Silica 3.35 " 

Peroxide of iron 0.79 " 

Chloride of Sodium 0.09 " 

100 

» From this it will be seen that the ash of wheat is rich in 
phosphoric acid, magnesia and potash. 

But the gluten, albumen, starch, gum, sugar, etc., of which 
wheat is composed may be further analyzed and converted into 
the original elements, thus : 

Gluten. Albumen. Starch. Gum. Sugar. Vegetable 

Fiber. 

Carhon 53.27 53.74 42.80 42.68 36.1 53.23 

Hydrogen 7.17 7.11 6.35 6.38 7.0 7.10 

Nitrogen 15.94 15.66 

Oxygen 1 50.85 50.94 56.9 16.41 

Sulphur I 23.62 23.50 23.35 

Phosphorus J 

The oil for the greater part consists of carbon. The gluten, 
and consequently starch, is found to vary considerable in dif- 
ferent varieties of wheat, as well as in wheat grown in differ- 
ent latitudes. 



BECK S ANALYSES OF FLOUR. 



109 



The analyses by Peligot are referred to by Morton, in the 
Encyclopedia of Agriculture : 





U 

en' r+ 


3w 
¥3; 


O 

&. 
(0 

m 

? 


o 

a' 
8? 


s 


Egyptian. 


S5' 
p- 


p 

1 

o 


> 

ri 

3 
cr<? 

9 


Water 


14.6 

10.7 

61.0 
9.2 
1.8 
1.0 
1.7 


13.G 

12.5 

59.1 

10.5 

1.5 

1.1 

1.7 


15.2 

14.3 

59. G 
6.3 
1.7 
1.5 
1.4 


13.2 

21.5 

53.4 

00.8 

1.7 

1.5 

1.9 


14.5 

13.4 

62.2 
5.4 
1.7 
1.1 
1.7 


13.5 

20. G 

55.4 
6.0 
1.7 
1.1 
1.7 

100 


15.2 

10.7 

61.9 
7.3 
1.7 
1.8 
1.4 

100 


14.8 

13.G 

57.9 
7.9 
2.3 
1.9 
1.6 

100 


14.0 


Gluten and albumen.. 


f 12.8 
t 1.8 

69.7 




7.2 


Cellular fiber 


1.7 


Oil 


1.2 




1.6 




100 


100 


100 


100 


100 


100 



From this it will be seen that of the above varieties grown 
in England, the White Flemish yields a minimum amount of 
gluten, the Polish yields the maximum ; but at the same time 
it yields a minimum of starch, while the Banat, which yields 
a medium proportion only of gluten, yields the largest 
amount of starch. 

Mr. Lewis C. Beck, of Rutger's College, N. Y., in 1848-9, 
made analyses of wheat and flour from Europe, as well as 
many from samples grown in the United States, with direct 
reference to their " relative value and the injury which they 
sustain by transport, warehousing," etc., analyzed specimens 
of wheat and flour from Russia, Poland and Holland — the 
specimens were forwarded to him from Amsterdam ; the anal- 
yses from these specimens, as well as some of those from 
wheat and flour, the product of the United States, will be 
found in the annexed table : 



New Brunswick, N. J 

" " damaged 

Genessee wheat, N. Y 

Zanesvile, , 

Empire Mills, Roscoe, O .... 

Venice Mills, O , 

Ohio \vhe;iT, fine 



Water. 



12.75 
12.35 
12.40 
12.85 
13.00 
12.36 
12.85 



Gluten 
and Starch, 
albumen.! 



10.90 
8.31 
11.46 
14.25 
10.00 
12.60 
12.25 



70.20 

(79 
70.20 
37.06 
70.20 

(75 

(73 



Glucose, 

Dextrin, 

etc. 



34) 



04) 
90) 



6.15 

I 

5.20 
5.98 
6.80 



Bran. 



1.00 



110 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



Ohjo wheat, superfine 

" winter wheat 

" " " second grinding 
Forest Mills, Logansport, Ind 

" " (damaged) 

Rock River, 111 

Bruce's Mills, Mich 

Monroe, " 

Wisconsin wheat 

Georgia " 

Turks Island, W.I 

Zealand wheat 

Poland " 

Soft Petersburg wheat 

Friesland " 

Kubauka •* 

Pennsylvania " 

Missouri winter wheat 

Maryland wheat 

Virginia superfine 

Chilian wheat , 

Spanish " 



Water. 



13.00 
13.10 
13.05 
12.85 
13.00 
13.87 
13.20 
13.10 
13.80 
11.75 
12.60 
13.40 
13.60 
13.20 
13.90 
12.35 
11.90 
14.00 
13.00 
12.05 
12.85 
13.50 



Gluten 

and 

albumen 



9.10 
11.50 
12.69 
11.90 

7.00 

9.90 
11.85 
10.40 
10.85 
14.36 
12.70 
10.25 
10 65 
11.00 
10.00 
16.00 
13.16 

9.30 
12.30 
12.95 

8.65 
10.30 



Starch. 



(77 
06.84 

(73 
67.00 
67.80 

.(75 
65.60 

(76 
67.00 
68.93 
66 — 
69.65 
68.15 
69.00 
69.75 
59.65 
60.20 
70.05 
66.65 

(74 
71.60 
68.90 



Glucose, 

Dextrin, 

etc. 



80) 
7.90 

61)0 
8.25 
11.30 

88) 
8.C0 

30) 
8.33 
4.96 
8.50 
6.70 
7.60 
6.80 
6.10 
9.00 
7.25 
6.30 
7.10 

50) 
6.10 
7.00 



Bran. 



.10 
.60 
.65 



0.35 
0.45 
0.20 



2.90 
0.75 
0.35 
0.65 
0.50 
.60 
.30 



In addition to this statement, the following analyses .may 
with propriety be here inserted : 





Vatjquelin. 


Dumas. 


Beck. 




Flinty 
Wheat, 


Soft 
Wheat. 


Flinty 
Wheat. 


Soft 
Wheat. 


Flinty 
Wheat. 




12.00 

14.60 

56.50 

8.50 

4.90 

2.30 


10.00 

12.00 

62.00 

7.40 

5.80 

1.20 


12.00 

14.55 

56.50 

8.48 

4.90 

2.30 


10.00 

12.00 

62.00 

7.36 

5.81 

1.29 


12.40 


Gluten 


11.46 




70.20 




| 5.20 











Professor Emmons, of New York, made many analyses of 
wheat, wheat straw, and chaff, grown in the State of New 
York, from which the following extracts are made : 

" Many difficulties exist in the analysis of the grain of the 
cereals, and particularly in wheat and Indian corn. In con- 
sequence of this fact in part, I regret that I am unable to 
give a full account of the composition of the former. But 
this is not all. 1 have been poorly supplied with samples of 
the grain ; and not living "in a wheat district, I have been 
unable to procure it, either in a ripe condition, or in its dif- 



EMMOJSSi ANALYSES OF WHEAT. Ill 

ferent stages of growth. I made repeated applications, both 
to the members of the Agricultural Society, and to other in- 
dividuals, but only in two or three instances have my appli- 
cations been successful. I availed myself, however, of several 
fine samples of wheat, furnished by Mr. Harmon. These, 
although the straw was in sufficient quantity for analysis, the 
grain itself was insufficient in amount to answer well that 
object. I have, however, made as good a use of the means 
within my reach, as I was able ; and I propose now to enter 
upon the details, as far as I am able at the present time : 

I. Winter Wheat from Genessee County. Received from Mr. 

Peters. The variety not given. 

Specific gravity 1.289 

PROPORTIONS. 

Grain ..... 1000.00 

Ash 1.450 

Straw 100.000 

Ash 2.660 

Chaff 100.000 

Ash 7.970 

From these proportions, I obtained from the ash of the gi'ain, Silica, 
0.075; Phosphates, 0.810; from the straw, Silica, 1.285; Phosphates, 
0.070 ; from the chaff, Silica, 6.435 ; Phosphates, 0.080. 

The phosphates were obtained by precipitation by caustic 
ammonia, and hence the full amount of phosphoric acid does 
not appear in the grain. 

Analysis of the ash of Mr. Peter's winter wheat. Effervesces 
slightly on the addition of acid. 

Sand 3.525 

Silicic acid 1.700 

Phosphoric acid with part of the magnesia 60.725 

Lime 7\ . 0.050 



112 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Magnesia 2.880 

Potash 7.180 

Soda 16.920 

Sodium 0.195 

Chlorine 0.295 

Sulphuric acid 0.895 

Organic acids 2.400 

Carbonic acid not determined 



96.775 



2. Organic Analysis. 

100 grs. gave as follows : 

Starch 61.400 

Albumen 1.215 

Gluten 4.460 

Casein trace. 

Matter dissolved out of epidermis and other bodies 

insoluble in water and alcohol, by acetic acid 1.980 

Matter dissolved out of epidermis and other bodies 
insoluble in water, alcohol and acetic acid, by a 
weak solution of caustic potash: comports itself 

like a.lburuen 1.480 

Epidermis after digesting in alcohol, acetic acid, and 

potash 3.410 

Dextrine 2.400 

Water 9.380 

Oil 1.050 

Extractive matter and sugar, and loss 13.225 



100.000 

This analysis is not complete : the extractive matter and 
sugar were not obtained. 

PROPORTIONS. 

Water 9.380 

Dry matter 90.620 

Ash 1.650 

Ash calculated on dry matter 1.281 



ANALYSES OF BLACK SEA WHEAT. 113 



II. Black-Sea Wheat from Lewis County. Soil slaty, being 

based upon the Utica slate. 

1. Analysis of the Ash. 

Removed 
from an acre. 

Silica 4.300 0.970 lbs. 

Phosphate of lime, magnesia and iron 45.376 10.240 

Phosphate of the alkalies 28.395 6.363 

Potash 10.830 2.444 

Soda 8.110 1.830 

Lime 0.010 0.002 

Magnesia 0.020 0.004 

Organic matter 

Carbonic acid 1.340 "0.301 

98.221 22.154 

2. Analysis of the Earthy Phosphates. 

Per centum. 

Soluble silica 0.003 0.074 ■ 

Lime 1.940 2.380 

Phosphate of peroxide of iron 1.880 4.470 

Magnesia., 2.920 12.440 

Phosphoric acid 12.825 30.760 

III. Black-Sea Wheat from the same County. 

Specific gravity 1.341. Kernel small, and but little lighter 
colored than the best kinds of rye. Soil based upon lime- 
stone. 

Analysis of the Ash. 

Sand 3.700 

Silicic acid 1.550 

Phosphoric acid with part of the magnesia 62.075 

Lime 0.050 

Magnesia 3.435 

Potash 8.045 

Soda 14.790 

Sodium 0.320 

10 



114 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Chlorine 0.490 

Sulphuric acid 0.340 

Organic acid , 2.000 

Carbonic acid not determined. 

Effervescence very slight on adding acid to ash. 



96.795 B fli 

IT. Analysis of Summer Wheat, received from Mr. Peters, 

of Genessee County. 

Removed from 
the acre. 

Silica 2.G33 0.687 lbs. 

Sand 1.607 0.419 

Phosphates of lime, magnesia and iron 48.000 12.528 

Phosphates of the alkalies 19.440 5.073 

Lime and magnesia 0.020 0.005 

Potash 14.720 3.841 

Soda 3.356 0.875 

Chlorine none. 

Sulphuric acid 0.544 0.141 

Organic matter 8.480 2.213 

98.864 25.782 

Percentage of water of Black- Sea Wheat on different soils. 

On limestone 10.52 

On slate...., 10.72 

On alluvial gravel 10.27 

On Sandy soil 11.10 

The variety known as Harmon Wheat, grown upon clay 
loam based upon the rocks of the salt group, gave water 
11.82, after long drying in the water-bath. The last had 
assumed a brown color, and appeared partially charred, al- 
though it had never been exposed to a temperature above 
212 ° Fahr. From the preceding observations, and others of 
the same kind, I am led to believe that this grain has always 
in combination, about the same quantity of water, and that 
soil and varieties do not cause it to vary much cither way 
from 12 per centum of'water. This amount of water, how- 
ever, although it is comparatively small, has probably a de- 



ANALYSES OF BLACK SEA WIIEAT. 115 

cided influence upon its preservation in transportation to 
foreign countries. The hygrometric power of grains and 
flour has not been determined. The percentage of water may 
not of itself form an obstacle to its keeping ; and if it is not 
in a situation to imbibe more, it may perhaps remain for years 
in a sound state. 

Y. Black- Sea Wheat from Leivis county. Grown upon the 

Trenton Limestone. 

Analysis of the Ash. 

Silica and sand 14.520 

Earthy phosphates 43.333 

Alkaline phosphates 23.646 

Potash 12.629 

Soda 5.068 

Magnesia and lime 0.030 

Chlorine trace. 

Sulphuric acid trace. 

Carbonic acid none. 

VI. A Winter Wheat from the same county. Grown upon 

sandy soil. Variety not given. Furnished by Mr. Beach. 

Analysis of the Ash. 

Silica 9.120 

Sand and coal 10.000 

Earthy phosphates 48.273 

Alkaline phosphates 15.501 

Potash 23.407 

Soda 4.044 

Lime 0.020 

Magnesia 0.002 

Sulphuric acid trace. 

Analysis of the Earthy Phosphates. 

Soluble silica 0.08 

Lime 1.98 

Phosphate of peroxide of iron 4.95 

Magnesia 6.64 

Phosphoric acid , 28.81 



116 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



VII. Winter Wheat from the same county. Furnished by 
Mr. Beach. Grown upon a gravelly soil. 

Analysis of the Ash. 

Silica and coal 12.134 

Earthy phosphates.....,, 37.072 

Alkaline phosphates 21.313 

Potash 22.496 

Soda . 7.348 

Chlorine trace. 

Sulphuric acid trace. 

Magnesia and lime 0.031 

Note. — I was desirous of repeating all those analyses in 
which so much foreign matter, as coal and sand, existed. Ex- 
perience subsequently enabled me to avoid this objectionable 
state of the ash ; still the results are correct for all the ele- 
ments except silica. In regard to this, I have been satisfied 
that it varies from 1.50 to 5 per centum; and it is probable, 
in those varieties grown upon soils of Lewis county, that they 
reach the maximum percentage. The grain has a thick cuti- 
cle, and is rather dark ; and it is in these kinds that the silica 
is in the largest proportions. 

VIII. Straw and Chaff of Wheat from Mr. Peters. 

1. Analysis of the Straw. 

Removed in a 
tun of straw. 

Silica 49.100 29.255 

Earthy phosphates 19.600 11.678 

Lime 3.460 2.061 

Magnesia 0.324 0.193 

Potash 22.245 13.253 

Soda 5.195 3.095 

Sulphuric acid 8.876 0.521 

Chlorine 0.121 0.072 

100.921 60.128 



ANALYSES OP GRAIN, STRAW AND CHAFF. 117 

2. Analysis of the Chaff. 

Removed in 
a tun of chaff. 

Silica 80.G0 148.893 

Earthy phosphates 8.80 15.710 

Carbonate of lime 4.70 8.390 

Magnesia 

Potash 1.80 3.213 

Soda 3.20 5.712 

Sulphuric acid 1.21 2.160 

Chlorine trace. 

100.31 179.078 

PROPORTIONS OF GR^IN, STRAW AND CHAFF OF SEVERAL VARIETIES OF 

WHEAT. 

Actual Per 

1. Old Red-chaff Wheat — quantities. centum. 

Grain. 7.24 grs. 100.000 

Chaff 2.21 30.524 

Straw 11.54 159.392 

2. Talavera Wheat- 
Grain 12.40 100.000 

Chaff 2.92 23.548 

Straw 14.44 116.209 

3. Indiana Wheat — 

Grain * 556.50 100.000 

Chaff 129.50 23.270 

Straw 611.00 109.811 

4. Improved Flint Wheat — 

Grain 11.30 100.000 

Chaff 2.72 24.070 

Straw 13.23 117.079 

5. Harmon Wheat — 

Grain 1207.50 100.000 

Chaff 300.00 24.844 

Straw 1166.50 96.604 

To determine the foregoing proportions of grain, etc., I 
took from a small bundle those heads and straw which re- 
mained perfect, a certain number, and shelled the grain, and 
weighed each part by itself. This method of determining the 
proportions of grain, chaff and straw, has been found as cor- 
rect, if not more so, as weighing large quantities in the usual 



118 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

way. Due care must, of course, he taken to avoid losses in 
separating the grain. 

IX. Improved White-Flint Wheat. 

Analysis of the Straw. 

Silica , 42.60 

Carbonate of lime 8.90 

Phosphates of lime, magnesia and iron 9.30 

Potash 22.76 

Soda 5.28 

Magnesia 1.58 

Sulphuric acid 5.85 

Chlorine 1.86 

98.13 
X. Old Red Chaff Wheat. 

Analysis or the Straw. 

Removed in a 
tun of straw. 

Silica 70.00 78.40 lbs. 

Coal 0.25 0.28 

Phosphates of lime, magnesia and iron 8.89 9.95 

Carbonate of lime 1.80 2.01 

Magnesia 0.15 0.16 

Potash * 12.12 13.57 

Soda 4.19 4.69 

Sulphuric acid 2.26 2.52 

Chlorine 1.75 1.94 

101.50 113.52 

The straw of the Old Red Chaff is stiff and rigid ; and from 
its characters alone it would he inferred that it contained a 
greater percentage of silex. 

XI. Wheatland Red Wheat. 

Analysis op the Straw. 

Removed in a 
tun of straw. 

Silica 15.75 84.84 lbs. 

Phosphates 8.21 9.19 

Carbonate of lime 1.05 1.17 

Magnesia 0.25 0.28 



ANALYSIS OF SOULE's WHEAT. 119 

Potash 7.20 8.06 

Soda 2.10 . 2.35 

Chlorine 0.24 0.26 

Sulphuric acid 2.21 2.47 

97.01 108.62 

XII. Soitles Wheat. Specimen taken from the State Agri- 
cultural Rooms. Fine plump berry. 

Calculated on 
drv matter. 

Starch 62.29 68.360 

Sugar and extractive matter, with a little 

acid, formed during the analysis 6.40 7.023 

Dextrine or gum 1.21 1.328 

Epidermis 7.20 7.903 

Matter dissolved out of epidermis and other 
bodies insoluble in water and boiling al- 
cohol, by a weak solution of caustic 

potash 6.82 7.485 

Oil 1.02 1.119 

Gluten 4.51 4.949 

Albumen 1.67 1.833 

Casein trace. trace. 

Water 9.79 

100.91 100.000 

The gluten in the above analysis is small, though, I think, 
correct. The matter insoluble in water was digested in suc- 
cessive portions of boiling alcohol for six hours, till nothing 
more was taken up. The matter insoluble in water and boil- 
ing alcohol was digested in a weak solution of caustic potash, 
which took up over seven per centum of the dry grain ; which, 
if albumen, increases that body to a large percentage. The 
gluten and starch agree nearly with the winter wheat from 
Genessee, but the albumen and epidermis are much greater. 

PROPORTIONS. 

Percentage of water 9.790 

Percentage of dry matter 90.210 

Percentage of ash 1.720 

Percentage of ash calculated on dry matter 1.906 S. 



120 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



XIII. Provence Wheat. 

Analysis of the Straw. 

Silica 68.60 

Phosphates 4.70 

Carbonate of lime 2.35 

Magnesia 1.35 

Potash 5.55 

Soda 5.63 

Sulphuric acid 2.83 

Chlorine 1.34 

Organic matter 4.20 

Carbonic acid 1.40 

97.95 

XIV. Hopetown Wheat. 

[Length of straw, forty-four inches.] 

Actual Per- 

1. Relation of grain, straw and chaff — quantities. centage. 
Grain 12.07 42.30 



Straw 14.23 49.86 

Chaff 2.24 7.84 

Specific gravity of the grain 1.391 



Ash calcu- 

2. Percentage of water and ash — Water Ash. lated dry. 

Grain 1.25 1.76 2.01 

Straw 13.7 4.16 4.82 

Chaff 11.5 10.36 4.82 

3. Produce, and mineral matter of an acre — Mineral matter. 

Grain ' 22.16 43.5 

Straw 25.94 120.4 

Chaff. 4.11 57.6 

Removed from an acre. 

4. Analysis of the ash of the grain — lbs. oz. 

Silica 3.20 1 6.6 

Phosphoric acid 44.44 19 6.0 

Sulphuric acid trace. 

Carbonic acid none. 

Lime 8.21 3 ' 9.2 

Magnesia 9.27 4 3.3 



ANALYSIS OF STRAW AND CHAFF. 121 

Peroxide of iron 0.08 0.9 

Potash 32.14 17 13.8 

Soda 2-14 1 8-8 

Chloride of sodium none. 

99.97 43 9.7 

5. Analysis of the straw and chaff — Removed from an acre. 

Silica 67.10 119 6.8 

Phosphoric acid 6.05 12 8.7 

Sulphuric acid 5.59 91 5.2 

Lime 4.44 7 14.4 

Magnesia 3.27 5 13.0 

Peroxide of iron 1.54 2 11.8 

Potash 10.03 17 13.6 

Soda 0.85 1 8.6 

99.97 177 11.5 

The foregoing extract, exhibiting the proportions of water, 
grain, composition, etc., of an English variety of wheat, has 
been copied for the purpose of comparison with wheat of New 
York growth. A comparison can be made by any person 
who feels an interest in this matter. I do not, therefore, pro- 
pose to enter upon a detail of difference or similarity ; observ- 
ing, however, that in the statement respecting the phosphates 
and phosphoric acid, I have given the phosphates of the 
earths and phosphates of the alkalies, by which it will be 
perceived that the earths, the lime and magnesia, as well as 
iron, are in combination with phosphoric acid. This fact 
does not appear in the extract which is given. 

The real composition of wheat appears only when an anal- 
ysis is made of its parts, as bran (which is the cuticle), and 
its flour. Time, however, has not permitted me to make 
those analyses. I can, therefore, make only the following 
very brief statement : 

Shorts, which is mostly a coarse bran, gives, 

Ash 5-115 per centum, which contains 

Silica 0-140 

Phosphates of magnesia, lime 

and iron 2-380 

11 



122 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Fine middlings lost in a wa- 
ter-bath 12.78 of water. 

Bran 12.37 water- 

"Which proportions are rather greater than that given by 
wheat. 

The specimen of winter wheat furnished by Mr. Peters... 9.72 water. 
Summer wheat 9.62 

Proportion of ash and water in straw of four varieties of icheat. 

Mineral matter in 
a ton of straw. 
Indiana, water 3.50 

Ash 4.40 99.90 lbs. 

Old red-chaif, water 7.50 

Ash 5.22 117.60 

Improved white-flint, water 9.50 

Ash 4.50 160.80 

Talavera, water 8.00 

Ash 5.46 122.30 

STRUCTURE OF THE WHEAT GRAIN. 

For all practical purposes, however, the grain may be said to 
consist of two parts only — the husk and the flour. The husk 
in grinding is separated from the body of the grain, and is 
called " bran" meaning that which is torn off or rent from the 
main body. The body of the grain after the husk has been 
removed, consists of a white, opaque, inodorous and tasteless 
mass, and may be regarded as a mass of starch. 

If a grain of wheat is cut across through the middle, the 
" husk" " bran" or outer skin will appear as a narrow brown- 
ish line inclosing the entire mass — this skin bending inward 
forms the furrow which runs lengthwise on the grain. The 
hairy or tufted end of the grain is the upper or end opposite 
to that in which the embryo is enveloped. After having cut 
the grain across, if now a very thin slice cut in the same di- 
rection be placed under the microscope, the thin, brownish 
skin will be found to consist of three layers or rinds, like 
peels of an onion ; the first of which is the outer skin (Fig. 



STRUCTURE OF THE GRAIN. 



123 



7), a a, consists of two 
layers of thick walled, 
porous cells, whose short- 
est diameter is thus ex- 
posed to view, the walls 
of which contain slight 
hollows or little canals. 
The middle layer b con- 
sists of cells similar to 
those of the first layer, 
but with this difference, 
namely : the cell walls 
are not so thick, and the 
pores are much more dis- - 
tinct than in the first : 
this layer has its longest 
axis at right angles to 
that of the first. The 
third layer is an exceed- 
ingly delicate and soft 
layer c, difficult to be 
properly defined with our wy FlG> 7# 
ordinary microscopes, or described because of its indistinct 
definition. Immediately beneath this last described layer are 
the gluten cells (Fig. 7), d. The gluten in the cells appears 
to be a faint, yellowish substance, very small grained, oily to 
the touch and smell. The cells in which it is formed are 
rather larger than any of the cells of the three layers just 
described, the walls of which are perhaps more delicate than 
of any others in the entire grain. 

The entire portions just mentioned, and figured at a a, &, 
c and d, are the portions which before the recent inventions 
in milling machinery were considered as " bran." 

Directly under the gluten cells d, lies the albuminous por- 
tion of the seed. This consists of hexagonal prismatic cells, 
which are filled with ovoid granules of starch " e." These 




124 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

starch granules, /, Fig. 7, are enveloped in several layers of 
cellulose or cell membrane, which, when heated to excess in 
water, bursts and exudes the starch contained in them. 

Wheat or flour is valuable just in proportion to the quan- 
tity of gluten it contains. In some varieties of wheat the 
gluten is more tough and fibrous than in others ; flour dealers, 
but more particularly bakers, determine the quality of flour 
by making a paste of a small quantity of it, and the 
tenacity of the dough, or the length of " thread " to which 
the dough may be drawn, determines with them the value of 
the flour. 

Several of the organic constituents of wheat may be ob- 
tained as follows : 

Moisten a handful of wheat flour with sufficient water to 
form a stiff paste when triturated in a mortar ; inclose it in a 
piece of thick linen, and knead it frequently, adding water as 
long as the liquid which runs through continues to have a 
milky appearance. After standing some time, a white powder 
will settle from the turbid water : this is wheat starch. 

Starch is one of the principal constituents of flour, as in- 
deed of all sorts of meal ; the second constituent remains 
behind in the cloth, mixed with vegetable fiber, and is a vis- 
cous, tough, gray substance, which has received the name of 
gluten (vegetable fibrine). The gluten swells up only, in 
water without being completely dissolved ; in its constitution 
it corresponds exactly with albumen, and, like it, contains 
nitrogen. When the water decanted from the starch is boiled, 
it becomes turbid, and when partially evaporated yields a floc- 
culent or flaky precipitate ; thus wheat meal contains also 
" vegetable albumen." If this flocculent precipitate is sepa- 
rated by filtration or draining, and the clear liquid running 
through the filter on which the albumen is collected, is now 
evaporated to a thick sirup, the addition of alcohol will 
separate this sirupy residue into two parts — into gum, which 
is left insoluble behind, and into sugar, which dissolves in 
alcohol, from which it can be obtained in a solid form by 



CELLULOSE. 125 

evaporation. Neither the gum nor sugar are thus obtained 
pure ; both contain a small amount of saline matter, and the 
latter, besides, traces of fatty matters. 

There is a certain intermixture of these organic substances 
— gluten, albumen, cellulose and starch — throughout the 
body of the seed, but are, notwithstanding, found greatly in 
excess in the parts indicated in Fig. 7. 

The walls of the hexagonal or six-sided prismatic cells are 
composed of a material known to physiologists as cellulose ; 
it is always an organic substance, and is distinguished by its 
insolubility in water, alcohol, ether, dilute alkalies, and acids. 
Vegetable wool, the pith of plants, and bleached paper, may 
be regarded as pure cellulose. Its chemical composition is 
the same as that of starch, namely : carbon twelve, hydrogen 
ten, oxygen ten parts. 



126 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER VI. 

GERMINATION OF THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Having briefly explained the composition and illustrated 
the structure of the several parts of the wheat grain, the next 
important subject to be considered is the germination of the 
wheat plant. In all seed-bearing plants, germination is the 
first manifestation of vitality. This action invariably takes 
place whenever the necessary external conditions are suffici- 
ently favorable ; these conditions may be embraced in the 
following : a proper degree of heat or warmth, light, or rather 
the effect of light, or perhaps the vicinity of light, moisture, 
and access of atmospheric air. When seeds are so situated as 
to enjoy these four conditions in a proper degree, germination 
invariably takes place in the healthy seed, or seed in a normal 
condition. If a seed is so situated as to enjoy the proper 
effects of light, moisture and atmospheric air, but is yet de- 
prived of all warmth, although it may not be really frozen, 
it will not — can not germinate. Water congeals at 32° to 31° 
Fahrenheit ; a few degrees more of cold will burst stout glass 
bottles filled with water ; by the action of frost, rocks are very 
frequently rent asunder, and it is related that at an armory 
in England, a cannon filled with water and the muzzle 
planted into the earth, was burst asunder by the action of 
frost, although the metal of the cannon was two inches thick. 
Quicksilver freezes at 40° below zero, Fahrenheit, or 72° below 
the freezing point, being a degree of cold which is met with 
only in such regions as those visited by the youthful and 
hardy, and much lamented Dr. E. K. Kane. The organism 
of the human system would be seriously affected under the 
influence of such a degree of cold, were the person not well 
protected by furs, fire, and other means. But the small seed 



PLANTS IN HIGH TEMPERATURES. 127 

grain, less than a rain drop in size, which, judging from its 
delicate structure and tissues, as illustrated in figure 7, one 
would suppose that the first hard frost would burst the cell- 
walls and decompose the grain, as is not unfrequently the case 
with the flesh of potatoes and apples. But not so the wheat 
grain, it is tenacious of life, and yields its vitality only to an 
(artificial) cold of 58° below zero, or 90° below the freezing 
point ! 

The wheat grain is much more sensitive to heat than it is 
to cold. Almost all cultivable plants require a warmth vary- 
ing from 50° to 70° Fahrenheit. All require a heat between 
32° and 100°— under 32° none will germinate, above 100° all 
are destroyed. There are, however, exceptions to this general 
rule. Carpenter mentions a hot spring in the Manilla islands 
which raises the thermometer to 187°, and has plants flourish- 
ing in it and on its borders. In hot springs, near a river of 
Louisiana, of the temperature of from 122° to 145°, have been 
seen growing, not mere!}'' the lower and simpler plants, but 
shrubs and trees, In one of the Geysers of Iceland, which 
was hot enough to boil an egg in four minutes, a species of 
chara lias been found growing and reproducing itself. One 
of the most remarkable facts on record, in reference to the 
power of vegetation to proceed under a high temperature, is 
related by Sir G. Staunton, in his account of Lord Macart- 
ney's embassy to China. At the island of Amsterdam a spring 
was found, the mud of which, far hotter than boiling water, 
gave birth to a species of Liverwort. A large squill bulb, 
which it was wished to dry and preserve, has been known to 
push up its stalk and leaves, when buried in sand kept up to 
a temperature much exceeding that of boiling water. 

Plants require a certain amount of external heat, but the 
amount varies very much in different plants. Wheat will not 
mature at a lower temperature than 45°. Potatoes require 
52°, barley 59°, while the larch pine can live when the ther- 
mometer is often, at mid-day, 40° below zero. On the other 
hand, the vine does not mature its fruit in Scotland; the In- 



128 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

dian corn does not certainly ripen in England, and most cf 
the Euphorbiaceae can only exist in tropical climates. Mem- 
bers of the same species of plants attain different ages, chiefly 
in consequence of different amounts of heat which surrounds 
them. Wheat in Scotland lives one hundred and eighty days, 
at Truxillo one hundred, and at Venezuela only ninety. Some 
plants become annuals in this and other countries, while in 
their native habitats they enjoy a perennial existence. Thecroton 
oil plant ig an example of the kind; in India it is perennial. 
If a wheat grain be steeped, during fifteen minutes only, in 
water having a temperature of 122° Fahrenheit — a temperature 
but little above blood-heat — the germinating principle will be 
totally destroyed. In dry atmosphere the grain will, perhaps, 
endure a temperature of 170° Fahrenheit, without being seri- 
ously injured. This sensitiveness to heat may be the chief 
cause why wheat does not prove profitable as a crop in the 
^tropics, where the heat of the soil frequently is found to be 
190° Fahrenheit. Warmth, in a certain degree, is just as essen- 
tial to the seed, in the process of germination, as it is to the 
egg during incubation, yet if the other agents or external 
conditions are not supplied, warmth alone will not cause the 
act of germination to be called into activity. If seeds can be 
so placed as not to be affected by the moisture, elevation of 
temperature will not excite the germinating powers; it is 
necessary to bear this fact in mind when packing seeds to be 
sent to California, or other tropical regions. As a general 
thing seeds are packed in cases, and these are stowed away in 
the hold of the ship, as soon as the tropics are reached the 
temperature of the cases is increased, this is attended by the 
formation of vapor from the moisture of the packages, and as 
a necessary consequence germination commences, but as there 
is nothing to maintain it, it ceases, and after germination once 
stops it can not again be excited to activity. There will be no 
risk attending the transportation of seeds if they are put in 
sacks, and kept in a place where the air can have free access 
to them. 



REQUISITES OF GERMINATION. 129 

Moisture is absolutely essential in germination, not only to 
promote it, but to maintain it when once called into action. 
The moisture penetrates the husk or outer covering of the 
wheat through pores or canals and ducts (see figure 7), and 
finds its way through the layers a, 6, c, and d ; when it reaches 
the starch cells e, it causes a great change to take place in the 
starch cells, which will be more fully explained. Although 
wheat and many other seeds will germinate when deposited on | 
the surface of the soil ; yet there is no doubt that they receive 
a better supply of moisture when covered with soil to the depth, 
of about two inches. On the surface of the soil the seeds are 
not only more liable to be destroyed by insects, birds or small 
quadrupeds, but the direct rays of the sun seriously interfere 
with the supply of the requisite amount of moisture. Not- 
withstanding many eminent botanists declare that light is not 
only prejudicial, but that darkness is absolutely essential to 
consummate the act of germination, I have succeeded in ger- 
minating wheat and bunch beans on the surface of the soil cov- 
ered with a pane of ordinary window glass, in about the same 
period that others germinated when regularly planted or sowed. 
Subsequent to these experiments I have learned that the Hon. 
Sidney Godolphin Osborne, of England, succeeded in growing 
the wheat plant to the length of two to three inches in glass 
jars on perforated plates of zinc suspended over water, in some 
cases with, and others without, soil, from which the plants 
were transplanted to glass tanks on the stage of the microscope 
in order to examine the process of development and growth. 

Atmospheric air is absolutely necessary to germination ; this 
air is composed of oxygen and nitrogen gas, while water is 
composed of oxygen and hydrogen gas. Notwithstanding 
almost all seeds will germinate in water, and none will germ- 
inate without it, yet they all require atmospheric air. No 
seeds will germinate in pure nitrogen, hydrogen, or carbonic 
gas; but all will readily do so in oxygen. The seeds of all 
aquatic plants germinate under water, and this circumstance 
might lead some to suppose that the presence of air was not 



130 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

indispensable; but it must be remembered that there is no 
water — except when artificially rendered so — that is free from 
atmospheric air. The seeds of aquatic plants therefore ger- 
minate just like fish live in water, even though it is covered 
with ice, by virtue of the oxygen dissolved in it. It is said 
that Saussure failed to cause seeds to germinate in water which 
was boiled long enough to expel all the air from it. 

The conclusion then is irresistible that air is indispensable 
to germination. 

Experience has taught that from two to three inches is the 
proper depth to sow wheat. At this depth, in a properly 
prepared soil, it receives an abundant supply of moisture ; is 
secured against the depredations of birds and insects ; it is 
sufficiently in contact with the atmosphere, and receives the 
necessary influence from solar light and warmth. The follow- 
ing statement may be found in almost every agricultural jour- 
nal, or treatise on agriculture ; it purports to be an experiment 
by Petri, made half a century since, with wheat ; but as Petri's 
experiment was with rye, and not wheat, it is probable that 
the experiment stated may not have been made by him, or else 
may not apply to wheat; certain it is that it was made in 
Europe and not in America : 

Seeds sown to the depth of C;ime above ground in No. of plants that came up. 

ys 7-8 

all. 



•J. 
] 


u 


12 


2 
8 




18 

20 


4 


(i 


21 


5 


a 


22 


fi 


u 


23 



7-8 
.6-8 
.4-8 
.3-8 
.1-8 



But I can not learn at what season of the year the experiment 
was made. This statement, then, is only of comparative value ; 
it teaches that no more than 1-6 as many plants germinate at 
six inches depth as would at three inches. On the 3d day of 
October 1857, I sowed some wheat on the surface of the soil, 
some at the depth of 1, 3, 4, and 7 inches. That on the sur- 
face and at 1 inch germinated and came above ground in six 



EXPERIMENTS IN GERMINATION. 131 

days ; at 3 inches in eight days ; at 4 inches in ten days ; at 
7 inches in eighteen days. Unfortunately my arrangements 
to ascertain the proportion at each depth that came above 
ground of the whole number sowed, was interfered with, but 
there were two or three only out of a hundred at seven inches 
that came above ground, and they perished during the few 
cold days in November. My impression is that about three- 
fourths of that sowed at four inches came up ; all of that at 
three inches, and all at one inch ; all that on the surface not 
destroyed by birds germinated. 

A German writer states that wheat sowed from one to four 
inches deep germinated the deeper the better, but from four 
to seven inches, the deeper the less successful was germina- 
tion ; at eight inches the seed did not germinate at all. It is 
reasonable to suppose that at the depth of eight inches it was 
deprived of the proper supply of oxygen gas, or rather atmos- 
pheric air. The warmer the air and the soil are, the sooner 
will germination be consummated. In Sweden, wheat sown 
on the 28th of April required eighteen days to come above 
ground; that sown on the 21st of May required eight days 
only ; while that sown on the 4th of June required no more J 
than six days. 

Light certainly is an indispensable agent in exciting into 
activity the germinating principle, as is abundantly proved by 
the following experiment and discovery of Mr. Robert Hunt, 
author of " Researches on Light :" " Some seeds being placed 
in the soil, in every respect in their natural conditions, duly \ 
supplied with moisture, and a uniform and proper temperature \ 
maintained, we placed above the soil a yellow colored glass, a 
cobalt blue glass, and a glass colored deep blood red, and allowed 
one portion to be exposed to all the ordinary influences of the 
solar rays. The result will be, that the seeds under the blue 
glass will germinate long before those which are exposed to 
the combined influences of the sunshine ; a few of the seeds 
will struggle into day under the red glass, but the process of 
germination is entirely choked under the yellow glass." 



v. 



132 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



Edinburgh, 1, George the Fourth's Bridge, ") 

September 8, 1853. j 

My Dear Sir : — I am favored with yours of the 5th, relative 
to my practical experience in the effect of the chemical agency 
of colored media on the germination of seeds and the growth 
of plants. 

I must first explain that it is our practice to test the ger- 
minating powers of all seeds which come into our warehouses 
before we send them out for sale ; and, of course, it is an ob- 
ject to discover, with as little delay as possible, the extent that 
the vital principle is active, as the value comes to be depreci- 
ated in the ratio it is found to be dormant. For instance, if 
we sow 100 seeds of any sort, and the whole germinate, the 
seed will be the highest current value ; but if only 90 ger- 
minate, its value is 10 per cent, less ; if 80, then its value falls 
20 per cent. 

I merely give this detail to show the practical value of this 
test, and the influence it exerts on the fluctuation of prices. 

Our usual plan formerly was to sow the seeds to be tested 
in a hot-bed or frame, and then watch the progress, and note 
the result. It was usually from eight to fourteen days before 
we were in a condition to decide on the commercial value of 
the seed under trial. 

My attention was, however, directed to your excellent work, 
" On the Practical Phenomena of Nature," about five years 
ago, and I resolved to put your theory to a practical test. I 
accordingly had a case made, the sides of which were formed 
of glass colored blue or indigo, which case I attached to a 
small gas stove for engendering heat ; in the case shelves were 
fixed in the inside, on which were placed small pots wherein 
the seeds to be tested were sown. 

The results were all that could be looked for : the seeds 
freely germinated in from two to five days only, instead of 
from eight to fourteen days as before. 

I have not carried our experiments beyond the germination 



THE EMBRYO OF WHEAT. 



133 



of seeds, so that I can not afford practical information as to the 
effect of other rajs on the after culture of plants. 

I have, however, made some trials with the yellow ray in 
preventing the germination of seeds, which have been success- 
ful j and I have always found the violet ray prejudicial to the 
growth of the plant after germination. 
I remain, my dear Sir, 

Very faithfully yours, 

CHARLES LAWSON. 



If we place a grain of wheat on the table 
with the "furroioed" side down, and the 
" hairy " end to the left, we will find con- 
cealed under the two thin skins, a a, fig. 7, 
at the right end of the grain, and under a 
little depression or shield, the embryo, e, fig. 
10. The perisperm or albuminous body a 
is the storehouse containing the nourishment 
for the embryo ; during the process of germ - 
ination the roots proceed downward from the 
radicle " c," and the stalk or halm upward 
from the plumule or feather " 6." As soon 
as moisture has found its way through the 
canals in the husks or skins (a, a, and layers b, c, and d, fig. 
7), so as to be in contact with the starch cells e, fig. 7, the 
moisture or water penetrates the cell-walls of the seed and its 
embryo, and there forms a strong solution. The seed has now 
the power of decomposing water — the oxygen combines with 
some of the carbon of the seed and is expelled as carbonic 




Fio. 10. — Grain of wheat (magnified) showing the embryo. 
a. Amylaceous body. 
6. plumule. 
c. radicle. 

h. and d. first and second seed-skins. 
e. prominence from which the main root issues. 
/. and g. prominences from which issue the true roots. 



134 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

acid. The presence of moisture and oxygen induces putrefac- 
tion of a portion of the albuminous matter in the cells ; this 
putrescent matter becomes an actual ferment — exhales car- 
bonic acid gas, generates heat and converts the insoluble starch 
stored up in the cells into soluble sugar — the whole remaining 
albuminous matter is speedily rendered soluble. The cells, 
instead of starch, are now filled with a strong solution of 
sugar, albumen and salts. The cells become more distended 
and those of the embryo having been stimulated into action 
are being developed acccording to the laws of vitality with 
which they were impressed at their formation. 

The substances deposited within the seed, that is the starch, 
cell-walls or cell-membrane (cellulose), were undoubtedly de- 
signed to furnish food to the young plant until it can provide 
for itself, for it is nevertheless true that the young plant, like 
the young babe, is dependent for its nourishment upon the 
bosom of the parent that bore it, and requires during child- 
hood a different food from that in maturity. In wheat, starch 
is the most important ingredient of this food ; but as starch is 
insoluble in cold water, it could not unaided attain the proper 
degree of fluidity, to be transferred from the albuminous body 
to the embryo. It has been observed that when moisture acts 
on the albuminous body of the seed, that carbonic acid is 
evolved : this evolution causes in some manner as yet un- 
known to scientific investigations, the formation of a substance 
known as diastase. The diastase is allied in its general prop- 
erties to gluten, and converts the starch of seeds into gum and 
sugar for the nutrition of the embryo. 

Most persons are familiar with the process of malting bar- 
ley. Barley is soaked until it has absorbed about one-hulf its 
weight of water, the grain is then thrown upon the malt floor, 
where it is kept in a heap in a layer about a foot thick. 
While in this condition the process of germination soon com- 
mences, and much heat is developed, which in a short time 
would destroy the grain were it not now spread out into thinner 
layers. When the young shoot on these grains of barley has 



DIASTASE. 135 

attained the length of the grain itself, then the germinating 
process is terminated by removing the barley to a kiln heated 
nearly to blood-heat. Every one knows how sweet and mucil- 
aginous malt is to the taste ; in malt the starch of the barley 
has been changed into sugar by the formation of diastase, 
which latter, according to Persoz, does not exceed the one live- 
hundredth part of the malt, but notwithstanding this quantity, 
Liebig says that the amount of diastase contained in one pound 
of malt is capable of converting five pounds of starch into 
sugar; and that one part of diastase will convert 2000 parts 
of starch into dextrine and sugar. The experiments made by 
G-uerin, to determine the influence of temperature upon the 
action of diastase are exceedingly interesting. He found that 
77.6*4 per cent, of sugar, and 12.25 of diastase were produced 
from 100 parts of starch paste at the temperature of 68°. The 
paste was liquefied, and 12 per cent, of sugar produce,d in it at 
32°, or freezing point; although the parts were liquefied by 
diastase at the temperature of 15 to 20°, dextrine only, and 
no sugar was the result. This fact offers one explanation why 
plants can not grow at a low temperature, namely, the starch 
of the seed can not be converted into sugar, and the plant is 
thus left destitute of the essential aliment of growth. 

If a paste be made by boiling starch with water, and while 
it is yet hot, we add (in a saucer), say twenty drops of sul- 
phuric acid, with constant stirring ; then place the saucer on 
a steam-bath till the paste has become semi-transparent and 
liquid ; then add prepared chalk till there is no more acid 
reaction— this chalk has a great affinity for the acid, and with 
it forms plaster of Paris or gypsum — after having filtered the 
mass from the gypsum, leave the former to evaporate in a 
warm place. The residue is a GUM perfectly soluble in icater. 
As starch digested with sulphuric acid forms dextrine or gum 
and becomes soluble in water, may not the evolution of car- 
bonic acid in germination perform the same office ? 

If we boil, say about two and a half ounces of water, and 
add to it twenty drops of sulphuric acid, and then add one 



136 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ounce of starch in the form of a paste, but in small quanti- 
ties at a time so that the boiling may not be interrupted ; when 
all the starch has been added let the mixture boil for some 
moments, then neutralize the acid by chalk as in the preced- 
ing experiment, and evaporate the liquid to a thick sirup ; 
this sirup is starch sirup, and consists of a solution of sugar 
and water, from which a beautiful article of solid white sugar 
may be prepared. In neither of these experiments has any 
portion of the sulphuric acid been decomposed, neither has 
any of it combined with the organic substance, because, in 
the gypsum thus artificially formed, we obtain precisely the 
same quantity of sulphuric acid that had originally been 
employed. 

Make a paste of a quarter of an ounce of starch and two 
ounces of water, add to this (by rubbing) diastase equal to 
one-fourth the paste, submit it to a temperature not exceeding 
150 ° Fah., till the paste is formed into a thin transparent 
liquid — boil this mixture for some time — then strain through 
a cloth, and evaporate in a warm place. The mass is dextrine 
or gum, soluble in water like that formed in the first experi- 
ment, or like that formed in the germinating wheat grain. 

Repeat this process, with this difference, that is, take three 
times the amount of diastase that was employed in the last 
experiment, but prolong the heating to several hours, but be 
careful that the heat does not exceed 170 ° Fah. This pro- 
cess produces, like the last, dextrine, but by boiling this is 
soon changed into starch sirup as in the second experiment, 
from which starch sugar may be obtained. 

Notwithstanding, we can not observe the changes while 
they are taking place in the wheat grain, as well as we can in 
the artificial processes with starch just enumerated; yet there 
is no doubt that in its turn the imbibition or sucking up of 
moisture and absorption of oxygen causes the liberation of 
carbonic acid gas, the formation of diastase which causes the 
conversion of starch into dextrine, and the dextrine into starch 
sirup. This starch sirup or sugar is what the young plant 



CELL PRODUCTION. 137 

feeds upon. That this is really the case is proved by the fol- 
lowing observation stated by Henfrey : 

" The cell-walls are formed of a modification of the com- 
pound of which all vegetable cell-membranes are formed. 
Within the cells exists nitrogenous matter in the condition 
of protoplasm, that is, a tough mucilaginous fluid, colorless, 
or with a yellow tinge, and frequently of more or less granu- 
lar character, which increases with the age of the cell. The 
increase of the plant is dependent on the assimilation of sub- 
stances requisite for the production of new cell-membranes, 
and of other substances to furnish new nitrogenous contents. 
When no material for forming cellulose exists, the plant can 
not grow ; but in solution of pure sugar, in the absence of 
any nitrogenous substance, the plant will multiply its cells 
for a certain time, the protoplasm of the old cells being trans- 
ferred into the new ones as they are successively evolved. 
But under these latter circumstances the cells become gradu- 
ally smaller, and at length cease to multiply ; a portion of the 
nitrogenous matter being toasted in the reproduction, till it 
becomes insufficient to carry on the growth ; but just as soon 
as nitrogenous matter is added, which can be assimilated to 
form cell -membrane, the growth (fermentation) goes on." 

Diastase then converts the entire contents of the seed into 
a tough, mucilaginous sirupy mass, which forms the food or 
cell-contents and cell-membrane for the young plant, till it 
can assimilate nourishment from the soil. In germination 
diastase is formed in the neighborhood of the embryo, but 
not in the body of the mass of the wheat grain. 

I have no data from which to determine accurately how long 
the contents of a seed will nourish the young plant. On the 
25th of December, 1857, no trace of starch, or starch sirup 
in the wheat grains that were sown on the 3rd of October, 
could be found, although it was tolerably abundant during 
November. Herman Wagner states that on the 1st of July 
all the amylaceous (starch) substances had disappeared from a 
barley grain that was sown on the 15th of May. 
12 



138 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Gum, and dextrine were mentioned as being synonymous 
terms, I did so in order to convey to the non -scientific reader 
a clearer idea of the matter under discussion ; but every 
chemist is well aware that the most important difference exists 
between vegetable gum and dextrine, namely, dextrine is sus- 
ceptible of being converted into grape sugar by sulphuric 
acid or diastase, while gum is incapable of undergoing any 
such change. In the animal economy dextrine may very 
appropriately be classed with those substances which enter 
into the blood ; the gastric juice converts all the starch re- 
ceived into the stomach into dextrine. Gum, on the other 
hand, is not taken up into the circulation, and is apparently of 
very little importance as an article of food, although its 
chemical constitution is isomeric, that is, it is composed of 
precisely the same elements, and in the same proportion, as 
starch and dextrine, namely : 

Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxygen. 

Starch 12 10 10 Loewig. 

Dextrine 12 10 10 " 

Gum 12 10 10 ". 

Gluten 12 10 10 

Cellulose 24 21 21 Encyclopedia. 

Cane Sugar 12 10 10 plus H. O. Loewig. 

Grape Sugar 12 12 12 plus 2 H. O. 

Having stated thus much of the chemical process of ger- 
mination, it may not be inappropriate to mention that many 
physiologists regard the process of germination as being a 
process of combustion or slow burning. They have been led 
to make such an inference from the fact that oxygen is ab- 
sorbed and carbonic acid gas evolved or exhaled ; but the 
experiments of De Saussure are direct evidence that the 
amount of carbonic acid given out is in proportion to the 
mass and not the number of seeds, proving that the carbonic 
acid is produced from the decomposition of the starch as a 
chemical process, and not from the growth of the embryo as 
a process of life. It is further proved that the relation be- 



Osborne's experiments. 139 

tween the oxygen consumed and the carbonic acid evolved is 
not the same in all plants, but these proportions should be 
constant if the theory of combustion is correct. Boussingalt 
discovered that the processes were in activity in the albumin- 
ous body after germination has taken place, and the young 
plant capable by its development of radical, or root and 
plumule, or young stalk, of an independent existence, which 
were supposed to be peculiar to that process only. 

On the 24th of June, 1856, Hon. Sidney Godolphin Os- 
borne read a paper before the London Microscopical Society, 
on " Vegetable cell-structure and its formations, as seen in 
the early stages of the growth of the wheat plant," in which 
many new facts in relation to the germination of wheat are 
stated. Mr. Osborne contrived to have wheat grains germinat- 
ing on the stage of the microscope, and by this means was 
enabled to observe every change which took place. 

The first symptom of germination in a seed of wheat 
consists in the liberating from its surface a species of fila- 
mentous or threadlike network, somewhat similar to the mycel- 
ium or roots of many of the fungi (toadstools, mold or mush- 
rooms) which infest vegetables ; nearly at the same time the 
whole seed is seen to swell, and become as to its external cover- 
ing transparent. At the germinating point of the seed there now 
appears a very small wart-like projection of tough white mat- 
ter ; this puts forth one cone of the same substance, pointing 
upward — the future plumule ; and several others projected in 
a straight line, soon to curve downward and become the roots, 
Fig. 8. These cones of protruded substance soon burst their 
outer cell-texture (A.) At this early stage a root cone be- 
comes a very interesting object under a high power of the 
microscope. At its apex (E E E, Fig. 8) there are what may 
with propriety be termed free capsules of cells, somewhat 
lozenge or diamond-shaped at extremity, 6, c, Fig. 9, but be- 
coming longer and more narrow toward the base. This free 
capsule envelopes the inner apex of the growing root, but 
there is a clear cell-less space between its base and the part 



110 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




of the apex which it there 
covers. Beneath this cellu- 
lated cone or capsule, the 
growth of the root takes place, 
by the development of cells 
at the extremity of the inner 
apex of the root. At a certain 
period of growth every root 
puts forth rootlets or suckers 
e <?, Fig. 8. These consist of 
long, narrow, cell-like struc- 
tures which put forth from 
the region of the fibro-vaseu- 
lar bundles of the main root. 
In order to determine the function of the capsule (Fig. 9), 
Mr. Osborne grew wheat roots in distilled water, in a solution 
of alum, in spring water colored with carmine, with vermillion 
and indigo. He treated the waters in which they were grow- 
ing with various fertilizing matters ; he succeeded in growing 
a wheat plant so as to produce a foliage of fourteen inches in 
length in a strong solution of prussic acid and cyanide of 
potassium. From these experiments he concludes that the 
epidermic plasm does absorb moisture from the soil ; in fact, 
it requires moisture to preserve its elasticity, combining in 
the formative matter it secretes some of the matters presented 



Fig. 8. 



Fig. 8. — A grain of germinating wheat, magnified. 

A. Cellular tissue, the original covering of embryo blade. 

B. Seed, starch, gluten, etc. [amylaceous body]. 

C. Main root. 

D. Hard Cellular matter, the base of growth of root and stem. 

E. E. E. Free cones of cells at the points of roots. 

F. F. Lateral roots. 

a. Plumule — future stalk. 

d. Course of bundle of dotted fiber. 

e. e. e. Suckers. 

/. Course of spiral fiber. 
h. h. h. Cellular tissue, original covering of the embryo root. 



WHEAT CAN GROW IN POISON. 141 

to it, in whatever medium it may grow, still the great sources 
of plant, health and strength are obtained by means of the 
capsules or spongioles, the fcrminus of every root and rootlet, 
and also by the absorbent cells ever found at the extremities 
of the numberless suckers ; for it is at these points that he 
found the cell structure ever greedily taking in whatever of 
foreign matter he succeeded in introducing into the media in 
which the plants were grown. There can be no doubt that 
the plant requires not only certain chemical constituents to 
secure its health, but that these must be offered to it, when 
growing in a medium, allowing the utmost freedom to the 
capsules of the roots, rootlets and suckers. There is no doubt 
that a highly pulverized poor soil would grow better plants 
than a close, hard, tenacious soil, however fertilized. When 
it is considered what a wheat root has to do, how it has to 
force its way and introduce its lateral branches through all 
manner of crevices, and among all kinds of material in the 
soil, we are struck with wonder at the beauty of the contriv- 
ances by which the spongioles or capsules, constructed of 
highly elastic material, can float their onward way ; consoli- 
dating as they grow, and having within them the growing 
organism of a scaffolding sufficiently strong to bear up in its 
deposited order, all the necessary structure in any course it 
may be compelled to take, however tortuous. 

There is a "circulation" in every one of the long suckers 
put forth from the roots, which can be plainly seen along the 
outer edge of each sucker, running from the root toward the 
blunt point, but no current has yet been traced returning to- 
ward the root. 

In order to ascertain whether the roots of the wheat plant 
take in nourishment for the plant, from the medium in which 
they grow by means of their capsules and those on their root- 
lets, Mr. Osborne made the following experiment : " Wishing 
to make some experiments on the action of poisons, I grew a 
small crop in a strong solution of prussic acid, with cyanuret 
of potash added to it — this gave a very vigorous growth to 



142 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



roots and leaves. Just as the root had acquired about four 
inches of length I applied my coloring matter to the fluid in 
which they grew ; I wished to see whether this would be taken 
up any where but at the point of attachment of the capsules 
to the apex of the root. The result is that it was not; the 
parenchyma or outer cell-texture is colorless ; that the capsule 
cells are strongly painted ; that as they have pushed on, noth- 
ing has been left in the natural cells colored but very small 
nuclei, excepting only along the whole course of the vascu- 
lar bundle ; here, what I call the pith tubes, were seen to have 
imbibed the pigment, and it can be traced along their whole 
course, i. e., along the whole course of the growth made since 
the solution was colored." 

There is a 
physiological 
pheno m e n o n 
connected with 
the growth of 
roots, which 
was omitted in 
the proper 
place ; namely, 
shortly after 
the radicle C, 
Figure 8, has 
burst through 
the integu- 
ment lateral 
roots F F, also 
developed o n 

Spongiole, or free cone of root E. both Sides of 

the main root. The main root " C," Fig. 8, dies away soon 
after the lateral roots F F, are developed sufficiently to 
elaborate nutriment from the soil, or media in which they 
are growing, and are developed from the protuberances /, g, 
Fig. 10, which may distinctly be traced in the embryo. 




PHYSIOLOGY OF THE ROOTS. 143 

They are in immediate connection or communication with the 
base of the first leaves. These lateral roots in their young 
state prove to be sheaths only (h h h, Fig. 8), from which at 
a later period the true roots F F, protrude. This method of 
root growth is characteristic of and peculiar to the cereal 
plants, and is by botanists designated as cndorrhizal. 

There is no subject connected with vegetable physiology 
which more nearly concerns the practical cultivator, as well as 
the man of science, than the precise nature of the action of 
roots ; for on them more than on any other organ of a plant 
depends the health of crops of every kind, without one single 
exception. That the subject has not received more attention 
is one of the curiosities of science. It is true there are many 
statements of variable character and value, yet even more 
speculations respecting the manner in which roots behave — 
theories of excretion — assertions regarding the chemical action 
roots are said to exercise on dead matter ; but the quiet 
practical man who reads these beyond the atmosphere of sci- 
ence, is far from being satisfied with what he finds in books. 

The question as to whether the roots of plants are or not 
endowed with any special excretory functions is one which 
has occupied the attention of many naturalists, as being one 
of considerable importance as well to the vegetable physiolo- 
gist as to the agriculturist in its application to the principles 
of alternation of crops. No absolute conclusion has as yet been 
come to, the affirmative as well as the negative having been 
respectively maintained, either from general induction, or 
more rarely from direct observation and experiment. The 
opinion, however, that no such excretions take place has been 
the most generally adopted. 

The impossibility of closely following under the microscope, 
in their natural circumstances, vegetable phenomena which 
take place under ground, and consequently in the dark, and 
in an opaque medium, is obvious. As a nearest approach to 
it, Gasparrini has caused the seeds of various plants to ger- 
minate under glass, in water, or in well-washed sand, in the 



144 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

dark or under diffused light, and thus examined their roots 
without disturbance in various stages, and at various seasons. 
He also raised plants for the purpose in vases of sand well 
pulverized and washed, so as to be able to free the roots for 
examination at a more advanced period with the least possible 
injury. His numerous experiments appear to have been con- 
ducted with the most scrupulous care, for which, moreover, 
his well known success in analogous researches offers a suffici- 
ent guarantee. 

It has long been known that roots absorb the nutriment 
necessary for the plant, by means of the young fibers which 
form the ultimate ramifications of the roots ; that these fibers 
are terminated by a short portion of a loose and soft texture 
called by botanists the spongiole, Fig. 9 ; that this spbngiole 
is the point of growth of the fiber, usually bearing at its ex- 
tremity a kind of cap of a harder and drier texture, called the 
pileorhiza, a, Fig. 9, which is pushed forward by the fiber as 
it grows ; and that, immediately below the spongiole, the fiber 
is usually fnore or less invested with a short down consisting 
of small spreading hairs. Grasparrini shows that the spongiole 
itself seldom takes any part in the absorption of the nutriment 
for the plant, but is nothing more than the young as yet im- 
perfect part of the fiber, consisting of cellular tissue in the 
course of formation ; that the pileorhiza is a portion of the 
epidermis or covering of the fiber which, after a period of com- 
parative rest, is torn from the remainder of the epidermis and 
pushed forward by the growth of the spongiole under it, and 
is ultimately cast off to be reproduced by similar causes the 
following season ; and that in the great majority of vascular 
plants the nutriment is either entirely or chiefly absorbed by 
the root hairs formed on the young fibers at the base of the 
spongiole, and which he on that account denominates suckers. 

Each of these root hairs or suckers consists of a subcuti- 
cular cellule of the epidermis, more or less lengthened out into 
a cylindrical hair-like form. It is at first uniformly smooth 
and straight, but at a later period cither the extremity or the 



FUNCTIONS OF .ROOTS. 145 

upper portion or rarely nearly the whole length becomes vari- 
ously deformed by club-shaped dilations, or irregular ramifi- 
cations. The length of the suckers, and the shapes of these 
irregularities, are often more or less affected by the obstacles 
they meet with in the earth, but not entirely so, for when 
grown in water perfectly free from an impediment there is 
very great irregularity in both respects. Internally, however 
much ramified, the cell remains entire with one continuous 
cavity from the base to the extremity of all its branches. Its 
walls also consist of a single membrane, no chemical reagent 
having disclosed any distinction between the walls of the cell 
and an external cuticle. 

These suckers appear to absorb the alimentary juices by 
endosmose over their whole surface. Like leaves on the young 
aerial shoots, they are formed on the young shoots of the 
roots; like leaves also they die and disappear after a longer 
or shorter season, leaving the old roots entirely without them. 

When fully formed, and before they decay, these suckers 
become more or less covered in their irregular branching por- 
tion (rarely in their basal cylindrical part), with viscous papillae 
or adhesive globules, forming granular masses, to which the 
surrounding earthy particles strongly adhere. Are these vis- 
cous masses excretions from the roots, or are they the residue 
of substances contained in the earth and chemically decom- 
posed by the roots in the absorption of such elements only as 
might be suited for the nutriment of the plant ? It is to the 
solution of this question that Gasparrini's experiments are 
chiefly directed, and he concludes that they are entirely ex- 
uded from the suckers. 

In the first place he adduces several experiments in refuta- 
tion of those who believe that the tender fibers of roots pos- 
sess some chemically dissolvent properties, and that it is by 
such means that they are enabled to penetrate into masses of 
hard substances, whether inorganic or organic, such as the 
woody tissue of living plants. In the case of the common 
Mistletoe growing on a Pear-tree, he followed the radical fibers 
13 



140 THE ^HEAT PLANT. 

of the parasite from the woody tissue through the alburnum 
and the parenchyma of the bark sometimes to the length of 
half an inch. They could be clearly traced their whole length, 
although forming an intimate cohesion with the tissue of the 
matrix, except the spongiole at the extremity, which was al- 
ways free ; but he never saw the slightest indication of any 
morbid alteration in the tissue thus penetrated. 

In the case of the young plants of wheat, rye, barley, rape- 
seed, and others which had been caused to germinate under 
glass, the process of excretion was readily observed. Previous 
to the formation of the adhesive globules on the surface the 
suckers were full of a fluid in which floated a granular sub- 
stance showing clearly a circulation in two currents, the one 
ascending, the other descending; after a time the suckers 
opened at the extremity and discharged the greater part of the 
granular substance they contained, the discharge being pre- 
ceded by a peculiar motion analogous to that of pollen grains 
before they burst. The contact of a drop of warm water ac- 
celerated the discharge, and if the fiber was cut through at its 
base the motion of the sucker was sudden and convulsive, and 
the contents discharged with considerable elasticity. 

In the roots grown naturally within the earth, the circula- 
tion of the fluid contents of the suckers, when observed, wan 
slow and feeble. Those which yet retained the granular sub- 
stance withinside were as yet free from the external papillae, 
while those covered with the viscous masses outside were nearly 
empty internally, but in these cases the excretion appeared but 
rarely to have been effected by the bursting of the extremity, 
but usually by exudation, through the membrane forming the 
walls of the cavity, and that in a manner which could scarcely 
be explained by endosmose alone, but by some other force 
unknown to us, and which must be included in the mysteries 
of vital action. 

With regard to the effects produced by these exudations on 
the capabilities of the soil for the nutriment of other plants 
at the same time, or in succession, there is nothing to show 



PHILOSOPHY OF ROTATION OF CROPS. 147 

that they possess any acid, caustic, or saline properties likely 
to act prejudicially on other roots. Whether the matter be 
compared to the fecal excretions or to the residue left by in- 
sensible perspiration on the skin of animals, it can well be 
imagined that it can not serve for nutriment if reabsorbed by 
the same plants, nor probably if absorbed by others until de- 
composed, but owing to its extreme tenuity the decomposition 
takes place very readily, and as recent detritus of vegetable 
matter, its quantity is very small in comparison to that of the 
decayed sucker and pileorhizas, and of the numerous fibers 
which perish from natural or accidental causes. If in the 
relative effect of different plants on the impoverishment of the 
soil the radical excretions have any effect, it can only be caused 
by the difference in the quality left in the soil by different 
species. Some of the plants known to exhaust the soil in the 
highest degree, such as Flax and Box, have few or no suckers 
to their roots and leave scarce any exudations. Rye and many 
other Grasses deposit very little in comparison with Crucifers 
and Cichoracese. Hemp on the other hand, which is a great 
exhauster, exudes a great deal by the roots; so do Wheat and 
Barley, but the exhausting effects of these plants may be traced 
to other causes. Thus, then, although from these experiments 
the fact of absorption and excretion from the surface of or- 
gans of temporary duration on the young shoots of roots is 
clearly demonstrated, we do not possess any data sufficient to 
affirm that the matter excreted produces any effect whatever 
on the capability of the soil to supply nutriment to other 
plants grown in it. 

One of the experiments made by Gasparrini is very instruc- 
tive as to the noxious effects of vegetable manures in those 
first stages of decomposition which are so favorable to the de- 
velopment of molds. In the month of January he sowed 
seeds of Triticum spelta, or as it is more commonly called 
Spelts, in a number of small garden pots filled with well washed 
Vesuvian sand. In one pot he placed a piece of young dead 
wood of Ailanthus glandulosus, in another a piece of bread, in 



148 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

another a portion of a green potato, in a fourth a portion of a 
radish root, in a fifth some parings of kid's hoofs and bits of 
nutshells, in the sixth nothing, for the sake of comparison. 
The pots were all watered with common drinking water, ex- 
posed by day to diffused light, and in clear days for a few 
hours to the direct light of the sun, and placed under cover by 
ni.2;ht. At the end of a month each pot contained three 
plants, all, even those in the pot without any organic sub- 
stance, equally healthy and luxuriant, about a span high, and 
with two leaves each. 

In the pot in which was the piece of bread, the roots of the 
spelt were much branched, the fibers almost all turned toward 
the sides of the pot ; the numerous suckers were as yet 
scarcely modified, or had only slight gibbosities toward the 
extremity, no circulation was perceptible, the granular mucous 
substance inside was more or less abundant, and many were 
sprinkled externally toward the extremity with similar mucous 
granular masses. A few fibers approached within a certain 
distance of the bread, but none had penetrated within it. The 
bread had become a soft, putrid, spongy mass, covered exter- 
nally with white branching filaments spreading from it into 
the sand in every direction, and already in many places 
having nearly reached the sides of the pot, and here and 
there a commencement of fructification seemed to show that 
these filaments belonged to a species of Botrytis. The 
spongy mass of the bread was also almost entirely occupied 
by a violet colored mycelium which appeared to be that of a 
Penicillium ; the filaments of this mycelium had also spread 
from the bread in various directions. Some had descended to 
the bottom of the pot, where they had attacked and produced 
a 'morbid alteration on one side of a bit of the rhizome of 
Smilax aspera, which had been placed over the hole of the 
pot. In another direction the mycelium of this Penicillium 
together with a few filaments from the Botrytis, had reached a 
fiber of the Tritieum, had encircled it for the length of half 
an inch. The portion of fiber so attacked was soft, livid and 



PLUMl'LK. 



149 



dead ; and the extremity toward the spongiole was shriveled 
and also dead. In the livid portion the suckers were but 
little developed and mixed with the Butrytis filaments; but it 
was evident that the chief injury to the roots was produced by 
the Penidllium, whose filaments adhered firmly to their epider- 
mis. In none of the other pots had the roots of the Spelt 
come into contact with the organic substances deposited in 
the soil. 



m 







PLUMULE. 

Having thus briefly described the process of germination, 
and the formation, function, and growth of the roots, the plu- 
mule or future stalk next merits attention. A section made 
with care through the white 
substance, from which the plu- 
mule and roots protrude, gives 
a beautiful view of the early 
formation of the plumule. 
Several layers of an oval- 
headed cell structure are seen, 
one longer than the other, i. e. 
more advanced in growth, the 
shortest or youngest being 
very small. When detached 
from each other their outline 
is that of a blunt spear head 
(Fig. 11, A,) at this stage their 
substance consists of a cellular texture of which the cells are 
very small as to their actual area, with rather thick walls of 
plasm. Toward their base, in the center of each, is the well 
defined indication of an upward line of spiral fiber — these are 
the embryo leaves. They have the same epidermic plasm as 




*Fig. 11. Young stalk of wheat (the extreme point of a. Fig. 8, mag- 
nified); it is seen to possess free capsule of cells and epidermic plasm, 
closely identical with those of the root. 



150 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



the roots, and into it are seen to project small points, the 
future hairs on the leaf of the plant. They have capsules, 
so far as yet can be determined, identical in structure with 
those of the root, although adhering more closely to the sub- 
stance covered, and the component cells do not separate in the 
way they do in that part of the plant. As the young leaves 
prepare to enter the outer world, they fold themselves longitu- 
dinally into a very small compass, Fig. 11, A, and carry on 
with them, until they have obtained an inch or so of growth, 
a straw-colored cellular envelop of stout texture, Fig. 11, 
A, B, (Fig. 12, a portion of the same highly magnified), 
this appears intended to protect them as they force their way 
through the soil, and on their first exposure to the weather in 
the outer world. At this stage of growth chlorophyll or 
green coloring matter is found existing in the leaves. 

There can be no reasonable doubt that the cellular envelop 
A, B performs a similar function to the capsules of the roots 
Fig. 9, that is, it exerts a chemical influence on the soil which 

lies immediately above it, rendering the 
soil exceedingly pliable, so much so 
that the tender plumule can readily 
penetrate it. The writer remembers 
having seen the young wheat plant 
force its way from a depth of several 
inches, through a compact clay soil 
over which a farm wagon had passed so 
often as quite to obliterate all the tra- 
ces left by the plow or harrow. 

As soon as the plumule has penetrat- 
ed through the soil an inch or more, 
it then gives birth to the first true 
leaves, while the central bud is destined 
to become the future stalk. The first 
experiment of the young plant is to form a joint or knot 

f. Fig. 12. A portion of (Fig. 11, from A to B) the edge of the young 
leaf of wheat, highly magnified. 




FUNCTION OF PLUMULE. 151 

immediately beneath the surface of the soil, and another one 
just above it. The upper one of these two joints or knots is 
the true commencement of the stalk ; the joint immediately 
beneath the soil becomes the point from which emanate the 
so-called crown-roots, and which are the chief laboratory for 
the preparation and distribution of the future nourishment of 
the plant. 

The plumule is of great importance to the existence of the 
plant, and by it may be readily demonstrated how dependent 
each organ of a plant is on the other, and how harmoniously 
the whole silently performs its destined function. If the 
" heart " or plumule of the wheat plant is pulled out, it will 
not be replaced by a new one, as is a spider's leg or snail's 
head ; but the plant will form a new shoot and put forth a 
new plumule. If, however, all the plumules are pulled out of 
a bunch or multiplied wheat stalk in the spring-time, the 
plant will die, from the fact that the dotted cell-tissue, Fig. 8, 
d and /, from which both the roots and plumule grow, will 
have been severed ; this cell tissue appears to be as import- 
ant to the vitality of the plant as is the spinal marrow in the 
animal kingdom. If a section is carefully made through this 
substance, in a direction which will include the lower part of 
the plumule and the commencement of the roots, we get a 
view of the basis of the whole vascular svstem. A lar«;e 
number of pitted cells are seen, some passing downward to 
branch out into bundles, one to every root; others branching 
upward to the leaves. 

Having stated the composition and structure of the wheat 
grain, as well as both the chemical and mechanical changes 
which take place during the process of germination, it may 
not be irrelevent to recapitulate the principal phenomena. 

The seed, when planted in the earth, was to all appearances 
an inertjjnodorous, and tasteless mass. In a short time it pre- 
sented unmistakable manifestations of vitality, in the develop- 
ment of plumule and radicle; as soon as the latter made their 
appearance, it was demonstrated that the starch, which is 



152 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

insoluble in water, had become solvent, and was converted first 
into gum and then into sugar to feed the young germ ; the 
cell walls of the hexagonal prisms were dissolved to form new 
cell walls in the plumule and radicle. 

As grain after grain of starch in the immediate vicinity of 
the plumule was converted into sugar, or rather a step beyond, 
for the nourishment of the plumule, the cells in the central 
and posterior portion of the grain were also undergoing the 
fermentative process, and as fast as required, the pabulum, 
undoubtedly impelled by chemical or electrical affinity, finds 
its way to the new plant. In the course of fifteen or twenty 
days, the entire store of food contained in the starch will have 
disappeared, and the young plant is now ready to enter upon 
the "trials of life" upon its own account, and in the very 
out-set the young roots find, that like the genus homo, " they 
are obliged to labor for their bread." 

It will now be necessary to give a brief description of the 
elements by which the rootlets are surrounded, and from what 
substances and in what manner they derive their nourish- 
ment. The nutrition of plants involves within its province 
the entire field of Scientific Agriculture, but in this essay it 
is proposed to discuss that which relates to the cereals only, 
and taking wheat as the generic type. 



VALUE OF ORGANIC MANURE. 153 



CHAPTER VII. 

ORIGIN AND CONSTITUENTS OF SOILS. 

So long as the young plant had in store organic materia 
which was provided for its growth by the parent plant, so long 
were all its energies and capacities not fully called into action ; 
but, with the disappearance of the last granule of mother 
starch, the plant finds itself compelled to elaborate and assim- 
ilate elements from the inorganic substances by which it is 
surrounded, or perish. The first inorganic substance with 
which it comes in contact in its first search for food, is in all 
probability clay. AVhat qualities has inorganic clay in com- 
mon with organic starch ; what does it contain that the tender 
rootlet can elaborate and assimilate so as to form from it not 
only materials for new walls or cells, but materials to fill the 
cells, material to form the sharp leaf, the firm stalk, the circu- 
lating sap, the head with its wonderful structure of chaff, 
beards, and young grains of wheat? It may be argued that 
the wheat plant derives its nourishment from the organic 
manure which the prudent farmer has committed to the bosom 
of the earth ; but suppose reference is made to a crop of 
wheat on new and virgin soil, on which no manure has been 
placed? In such a case, replies another, the nourishment may 
be derived from decaying vegetable matter. Were it not for 
the patient investigation of physiologists, the last named posi- 
tion might be assumed as the true one, but experiments have 
demonstrated that plants can be grown to full and perfect 
maturity without a single particle of organic matter.* If 

* Tull's System of Culture, as also the more recent Lois-Weedon 
System, as well as facts developed by underdraining, incontestably 
establish the fact that as good crops can be grown without as with 
organic manure. 



154 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

plants did not assimilate inorganic matter, there would be no 
ashes left after burning them ; these ashes, as was demonstrated 
on a preceding page, consist entirely of inorganic substances. 

Much of the qualities as well as of the constituents of clay 
may be determined by tracing it to its origin. Possibly it 
may cause a little surprise to state that the soft and plastic 
clay is derived from granite, which is proverbial for its 
unyielding hardness and firmness. 

Granite is composed of three and sometimes four distinct 
substances, namely : a white lustrous mineral named feldspar ; 
a white, generally opaque, one. known as quartz, and one 
whose luster is more or less pearly, and color varying from a 
transparent white to a dark olive green, and is susceptible of 
being divided into thin flexible laminae; this latter is known 
as mica ; and a dark bottle-green mineral, known as hornblende. 
With the exception of quartz and oxide of iron, feldspar is 
the most generally diffused mineral. Klaproth made an anal- 
ysis of it and found it to consist of — 

Silica 64.50 

Alumina 19.75 

Potassa 11.50 

Oxide of Iron 1.75 

Water .75 

Lime a trace. 

98.25 

Quartz is nearly pure silicic acid. The fine white sand 
found in the beds of streams is quartz ; that which is whitest 
is the purest; many sandstones are nearly pure quartz, but 
more generally are mixed with oxide of iron, lime, etc. Flint 
and rock crystal are quartz, the latter being pure silica, that 
is, silicon (the base) united with oxygen in the proportion of 
one of silicon to three of oxygen. Silicic acid combines with 
the bases of metals and minerals forming silicates ; almost all 
rocks and minerals consist of these silicates, more especially 
those of alumina, lime, magnesia, oxide of iron, potash and 



PROPERTIES OF ALUMINA. 155 

soda, all of which, except those containing an excess of the 
stronger alkalies, are insoluble in water. The silica is ren- 
dered soluble by the action of potash and soda in the soil, so 
that it may be absorbed by the plant, as it is a necessary in- 
gredient in forming the outer coat of the stalk of wheat and 
corn, by which these plants obtain their solidity and stiffness. 
Plants, whose length and thinness of stalks or stems are 
exposed to destructive influences require both solidity and 
stiffness to support them in an erect position, and this in all 
probability is the reason why the stems of the cereals rather 
than any other class of plants, contain so large a quantity of 
silica deposited in the stem and chaff, scarcely any in the 
grains. It always exists in a free state in plants, and does 
not participate to any important extent in the direct nutrition 
of vegetable life. 

Alumina, or pure clay is everywhere found in great abun- 
dance. The sapphire and ruby are crystallized forms of 
alumina, and emery is a more massive as well as crystallizable 
form. Alumina forms the chief ingredient of all clays, and 
of most of the slaty rocks from which, through disintegration, 
the clays are chiefly derived. Pure alumina, however, is a 
fine white powder, quite unalterable in the fire. We fre- 
quently meet with it in chemical laboratories, precipitated 
from its solution in acids by alkalies ; it forms in this condi- 
tion a very bulky gelatinous hydrate, which when dried at a 
gentle temperature, is found to consist of aluminum 2 equiva- 
lents, oxygen 3, and water 6. When dry alumina is mixed 
with water, it forms a plastic mass which admits of being 
molded. This plasticity is imparted to the clay by the alu- 
mina, but were it absent, no potter could produce earthen- 
ware or porcelain. 

Aside from imparting tenacity and firmness to the soil of 
which it constitutes a part, it absorbs moisture from the atmos- 
phere, and with ammonia forms true salts. It also acts either 
as an acid or an alkali, because like an acid it unites with the 
alkaline bases of potassa, lime, and baryta; like an alkali by 



156 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

forming salts with an acid. Our red and yellow clays are sili- 
cates of alumina and the peroxide of iron, united with lime, 
magnesia and sometimes with potash. 

Potassium is a metal of a bluish white color, and has a 
metallic luster in a very high degree. If a portion of this 
metal is placed in a vessel and covered with naptha (a trans- 
parent mineral fluid, containing no oxygen whatever), and 
then a gentle heat applied, it will be found that it melts at a 
temperature considerably less than that of boiling water j and 
while in this state it much resembles quicksilver or mercury. 
It is lighter than water, and consequently floats on it. Po- 
tassium has so great an affinity for oxygen that unless kept in 
a vessel under naptha, it is in a short time converted into a 
white solid oxide, in which latter state we know it best. 
Every one is familiar with it under the name of Potash ; com- 
bined with nitric acid, potash forms the saltpetre of com- 
merce. Inconsequence of the strong affinity which Potassium 
has for oxygen, it readily decomposes the oxides o> chlorides 
of aluminum, as well as silicic acid. 

Oxide of Iron, or Iron Rust, is perhaps the most widely 
disseminated of all metals. There is scarcely a mineral, a 
soil, or a rock which does not contain, in a greater or less 
quantity, the oxide of iron. Chalybeate waters are so called 
because they contain in solution the carbonate of Iron. Iron 
has a strong affinity for oxygen. 

Iron not only constitutes a portion of the food of plants, 
but acts as a concentrator or condensor of gases from the 
atmosphere which form a part of the food. Peroxide of Iron 
and alumina, says Liebig, are distinguished from all other me- 
tallic oxides, by their forming solid compounds with ammonia. 
The precipitates obtained by the addition of ammonia to salts 
of alumina or iron are true salts in which the ammonia is 
contained as a base. Minerals containing alumina or oxides 
of iron also possess in an eminent degree the remarkable 
property of attracting ammonia from the atmosphere and 
retaining it. Soils therefore containing the oxides of iron 



PROPERTIES OF MICA. 157 

and burned clay, must absorb ammonia, an action which is 
favored by their porous condition ; they further prevent by 
their chemical properties the escape of the ammonia once 
absorbed. Such soils act indeed precisely as a mineral acid 
would do if extensively spread over their surface. The am- 
monia absorbed by the clay of ferruginous oxides is separated 
by every shower of rain and conveyed in solution to the roots 
of the plant. 

Mica occurs confusedly crystallized as one of the constitu- 
ents of granite, at other times it is found in large hexagonal 
or six-sided plates in porphyry and primitive limestone. It 
is commonly called Isinglass, from its remarkable transpa- 
rency. The analysis by Klaproth gives — 

Alumina 20.00 

Silica 47.00 

Oxide of Iron 15.50 

Oxide of Manganese 1.75 

Potassa 14.50 

All these ingredients have just been described with the excep- 
tion of the manganese, which is not always found in soils and 
yet more rarely found in plants, so rarely as not to be indispen- 
sably necessary to the growth or luxuriance of the plant. It 
is always found in some compound form, never as a pure metal. 
When artificially produced the metal is hard, brittle, of a 
grayish white color ; as a metal it is not applied to any useful 
purpose ; but the various oxides are extensively used in chem- 
ical manufactures — one preparation of manganese, the sul- 
phate, is extensively used in calico printing. 

The remaining undescribed ingredient of the granite rock 
is hornblende — this occurs crystallized with the feldspar and 
quartz. The crystals are confused and aggregated ; some- 
times however, they are long flat and hexagonal and pris- 
matic — exhibiting fibers which are tough and rather difficult 
to break. According to Klaproth it contains — 



158 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Silica 42.00 

Alumina 12.00 

Lime 11.00 

Magnesia 2.25 

Oxide of Iron 30.00 

Ferruginous Manganese 25 

In the hornblende we find two substances, Lime and Mag- 
nesia, which have not yet been noticed. 

The metal mentioned by metallurgists and chemists as cal- 
cium or lime, is very little known, but is described as being a 
metal of a dark gray color. The metal rapidly oxidizes in the 
atmosphere ; in this state it is known to all as quick-lime. 
Lime in the form of a carbonate is very abundant, and in this 
form we recognize it as marble, common limestone, chalk, 
oyster and muscle shells. Sulphate of lime is gypsum or 
plaster of Paris, so also is alabaster — this latter is much finer 
however than the gypsum. Common limestone or marble, 
when burned, becomes quick-lime. The phenomenon of slack- 
ing quick-lime is familiar to all — in this process every ton of 
limestone absorbs one fourth of a ton of water, which becomes 
a part of the stone itself. The action of lime in the soil is 
not yet thoroughly understood ; but some writers assume that 
it promotes the decay of organic matters contained in the 
soil, hastening their conversion into carbonic acid and am- 
monia, from which they assert that plants derive their food. 
Lime is generally present in larger quantities in the ashes of 
plants than magnesia. The cereals contain, perhaps, the 
smallest quantities of lime; in the ashes of the grain, about 
3 per cent, is found ; in the straw of winter wheat and rye 
about 5 per cent., while that of the summer cereals contains 
from 7 to 9 per cent. The probability is that the carbonate 
of lime is requisite to form a portion of the product itself, 
and that it assists in decomposing minerals containing pot- 
assa, and converting it into a soluble form for the nourishment 
of the plant. The ashes of potatoes contains 2 per cent, only 
of lime, while the tops contain from 30 to 60 per cent. The 



PROPERTIES UP LIME. 159 

turnips contain from 6 to 12 per cent., while the tops contain 
15 per cent. When lime contains a certain proportion of clay- 
it becomes a cement. Limestones containing 8 to 12 per 
cent, of clay, furnish a hydraulic lime, which hardens under 
water in 15 to 20 days; when 18 per cent, of clay, it hardens 
in 8 days ; if 25 per cent, it will harden in 3 or 4 days ; Ro- 
man cement contains 35 to 40 per cent, of clay, and hardens 
in an hour. 

Sulphite of Lime is a compound containing one equivalent 
of sulphuric acid less, and two equivalents of water more 
than gypsum, and has recently been very successfully employed 
in the extraction of sugar from beet root ; this substance pre- 
vents the pulp from changing color by exposure to the air and 
the loss of sugar by fermentation. 

Sulphate of Lime, or gypsum, if allowed to remain when in 
solution in a state of contact with organic matters is reduced 
to sulphide of lime, which, under the influence of water and 
carbonic acid, is converted into carbonate of lime. Nearly all 
the plant-ashes contain this substance, it is therefore of great 
importance to the plant. 

Phosphate, of Lime, an ingredient so essential to the cereal 
plants as well as to the animal frame, is found in the mineral 
kingdom. 

Traces of phosphoric acid are found in a great number of 
rocks and stones in the soil, in almost all plants and in ani- 
mal matters. It never occurs free, or uncombined, but always 
in combination with a base — most generally with lime. Phos- 
phate of lime is always found in wheat, and all the vegetable 
substances which constitute part of the food of man and ani- 
mals ; and we find it in a very considerable quantity associated 
with carbonate of lime in coprolites (or fossil manure of ex- 
tinct animals), and other forms of fossil manures, which of late 
have been much talked of, but is by no means abundant in the 
latter. When bones are burnt, there remains, after the con- 
bustion of all the organic matter which they contain, about 
three-fourths of their weight of earthy substances ; this is 



160 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

phosphate of lime, together with a small portion of carbonate 
of lime ; bones consist of phosphate and carbonate of lime, 
cemented together as it were with gelatine and a little albu- 
men — they also contain a small quantity of oil. Phosphate 
of lime is insoluble in water, but readily dissolves in solutions 
containing a little free acid. 

Magnesium is a silver white metal, but as a metal is rare 
and is not employed in any useful purpose. Like most of 
minerals and metals, it readily unites with oxygen, forming- 
oxide of magnesia or common magnesia. In the drug shops 
it is sold as a white powder. When united with sulphuric 
acid it forms the ordinary epsom salts of commerce. Magne- 
sia is found in the ashes of many plants, but what action it 
has upon other ingredients of the soil is not understood suffi- 
ciently to warrant an expression. 

These ingredients, being the chief ones of the soil, are all 
derived from granite through disintegration by the incessant 
action of the elements, of rain, dew and frost during the lapse 
of untold ages. These have served to comminute and separate 
the original ingredients from each other, and to recombine 
them so as to form new compounds. Granite undoubtedly is 
the primary rock in the geological series, that is to say, it is 
the base from- which all other rocks are derived. The first 
stratified rock is gneiss, which is nothing more than granite, 
which always occurs in shapeless masses, decomposed under 
great pressure, perhaps under some vast ocean — the gneiss 
strata became upheaved, the bed of the ocean changed, and 
the gneiss, now in its turn is decomposed, and the particles 
separated — the feldspathic portion forming the various slates. 
the lime being held in solution, is deposited in separate strata, 
the mica forming the mica schists, and in combination with 
the feldspar, forming the mica slates. These secondary or 
derivative rocks in turn undergoing decomposition, forming 
new combinations more recent rocks and strata, until at length 
the feldspar has been resolved into clay, the quartz into sand 
rock, the lime universally diffused, and in places deposited in 



PROPERTIES OP SILICA. 161 

ledges of rocks, often measuring thousands of feet in thick- 
ness, and many miles in extent. The action of the rains, 
frosts, etc., acting on granite and other rocks, and disintegra- 
ting them, is called mechanical disintegration; but nature has 
adopted and employed yet another means of reducing rocks, 
which is recognized as chemical disintegration or decomposi- 
tion. Those minerals which contain metallic sulphurets, be- 
come, by the gradual absorption of oxygen converted into 
sulphates, which are not only soluble in water, but absorb 
moisture from the air, and thus crumble down. In the 
disintegration of silicious minerals the process is equally sim- 
ple. Silica is insoluble in both hot and cold water; it unites 
with alkalies and forms the saline compounds known as sili- 
cates which have been previously mentioned ; the silicates of 
potash, soda and lime, are neutral compounds, and as this 
property of neutralizing metallic oxides and alkalies belongs 
to acids, only silica has received the name of silicic acid ; 
this acid is, however, very feeble, for all the soluble silicates 
can be decomposed by carbonic acid. The action of water 
containing carbonic acid becomes very manifest on quartz. 
Liebig mentions an experiment in which some white sand was 
thoroughly cleansed by boiling in nitro-muriatic acid, and 
after completely removing the acid by washing the sand with 
water, the sand thus purified was exposed to the action of 
water saturated with carbonic acid. After a lapse of thirty 
days this water was analyzed, and found to contain in solu- 
tion, silica, carbonate of potash, lime and magnesia; thus 
proving that the silicates contained in the sand were unable 
to withstand the continued action of water containing carbonic 
acid, although the same silicates had resisted the short action 
of the nitro-muriatic acid. 

So also in nature, feldspar, as well as the minerals and rocks 
containing silicates of alkaline bases, can not resist the con- 
tinued solvent action of carbonic acid dissolved in w r ater ; and 
in this way, either in the form of soluble silicates or a hydrate 
of silica, this important ingredient, in some plants, is taken 
14 



102 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

up by the roots. It may perhaps be objected by some that 
feldspar could not furnish the amount of potash necessary for 
the growth of dense forests as well as the cereal and uther 
cultivated crops. Liebig, who is perhaps the best authority 
on all subjects connected with physiological chemistry, says 
that a cubic foot of feldspar will furnish the necessary amount 
of potash to supply an oak copse covering a surface of nearly 
one acre, for five years. About ten per cent, of the heart 
wood, and 13 1-2 percent, of the sap wood of oak is potash. 

In addition to the mineral earths and metals already men- 
tioned, there are other ingredients formed in soils ; among 
these are : 

Sodium is a silver white metal, having a very high luster, 
and is perhaps more abundant than any other, for it consti- 
tutes two-fifths of all the sea salt existing in sea water, in the 
water of springs, rivers and lakes, in almost all soils, and in 
the form of rock salt. Sea salt is a compound of sodium 
with chlorine — sodium also occurs as oxide of sodium or soda 
in a good many minerals, and more especially in the forms of 
carbonate, nitrate and borate of soda; these forms of this 
metal are undoubtedly to be attributed to the process of 
chemical disintegration of primitive rocks. 

Soda or sodium is a necessary constituent of the soil, in 
which it performs a part not much unlike potash, for which it 
may be substituted to a great extent. 

Phosphoric acid is of equal if not more importance than 
silicic acid, is found in all rocks of primitive origin. In the 
animal kingdom it is found as phosphate of lime, magnesia 
and ammonia ; the fact that it is found in the ashes of all the 
cultivated plants, is sufficiently indicative of the part it per- 
forms in the vegetable economy — it contributes about ten per 
cent, of the ashes of the roots of the red beet ; about forty 
per cent, of the ashes of the grain of Indian corn ; about fifty 
per cent, of the ashes of buckwheat grains. 

Notwithstanding, a soil may produce a large and rank 
growth of straw, unless phosphoric acid is present in sufficient 



SULPHUR If ! ACID. 163 

quantity, and in a proper form for the plant to assimilate it, 
there will not be a corresponding yield of grain. Hence in 
soils in which this condition of things is manifest, the agri- 
culturist may increase the quantity of grain by the applica- 
tion of manures containing this ingredient. 

Sulphuric acid, or oil of vitriol, occurs in large quantities 
in the mineral kingdom, in combination with various bases, 
such as the alkalies and alkaline earths. In New Granada, 
in South America, this acid has been discovered in the un- 
combined state in a thermal spring. In the soil sulphuric 
acid acts rather as a solvent of other ingredients than as a 
food for plants, although it is found in various combinations 
in the ashes of plants. It exists most abundantly in the tops 
of turnips, potatoes, and plants of this class, amounting to five 
to ten per cent, of their ashes. There is more of it contained 
in the straw than in the grain of the cereals ; it is most 
abundant, however, in the ashes of oil-producing seeds. 

The foregoing constitute the tangible ponderable bodies 
(that is, the bodies that are considerably heavier than com- 
mon air) which are contained in the soil, and that are absorbed 
and assimilated by the plant. The soil not unfrequently 
contains other substances from which the plant can derive no 
nourishment, and which proves an injury rather than other- 
wise, to the plant; such are, for example, oxide of lead, cop- 
per, etc. There are four gases, however, whose presence is 
as absolutely necessary to the successful growth of plants as 
that of any of the ingredients of the soil, these four gases 
are named carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. All that 
portion of the plant not derived from the ponderable bodies 
of the soil, as well as the whole atmosphere of the globe, all 
the water, and a very considerable portion of the solid rocks 
which compose this earth consist of one, two, three, or all of 
these gases combined in different proportions. Carbon is 
generally found as a solid, but the remaining three occur as 
pure gases in nature. 



164 the wheat plant. 

Carbon. 

In its pure and crystalized state, carban is the most highly 
valued of all precious gems — the diamond. Incredible as it 
may appear, common charcoal and the diamond are composed 
of precisely the same elements. All the mineral or fossil 
bituminous coal, cannel coal, anthracite coal, are chiefly car- 
bon ; it occurs in many minerals in combination with oxygen, 
and in this form is known as carbonic acid. As it forms 
nearly fifty per cent., or one-half of all vegetables, it follows 
that it is one of the most important ingredients in vegetable 
economy. It possesses the peculiar property of absorbing 
several of the other gases ; hence its great utility in prepar- 
ing or solving other ingredients for the benefit of the plant. 
It has a great affinity for oxygen, and combines with it in the 
proportion of one equivalent of carbon with two of oxygen ; 
in this combined state it is known as carbonic acid, and is 
readily absorbed by water, imparts to it a lively, sparkling 
appearance, and a slightly sour taste. In the decomposition 
of animal and vegetable matter, it is evolved or taken out. 
and as it is heavier than the atmosphere, it not unfrequently 
collects in low places, and is known as choke damp, in wells, 
which so often proves fatal to those who incautiously venture 
into such places. 

When carbonic acid gas is combined with hydrogen, it 
forms the gas which is used in cities and towns for illuminat- 
ing purposes. This combination is found in nature, and is 
the product of the decomposition of vegetable matter under 
water ; hence it is almost always present in the vicinity of 
stagnant pools of water, and is known as " marsh gas." In 
coal mines it frequently accumulates in large quantities, and 
is known by the miners as "Jim-damp" and when approached 
with an unprotected lighted candle or lamp, not unfrequently 
explodes, causing serious consequences. 

Oxygen. 
Oxygen is a gas which is colorless, tasteless and inodorous, 
and is the most extensively diffused element in nature. It 



PROPERTIES OF OXYGEN. 1G5 

constitutes about one-fifth of the entire atmosphere, the remain- 
ing four-fifths being nitrogen. It forms about eight-ninths 
of all the water on the globe; it enters as a constituent into 
nearly all the earths and rocks, and with few exceptions com- 
bines with all the metals. Oxygen is the acid or sour princi- 
ple in nature ; hence the German chemists have termed it 
" sour stuff.'' 1 It was called "oxygen" (meaning the sour 
principle) by Lavoisier (although it was discovered almost 
simultaneously in 1774 by several others), because all known 
acids at that time were supposed to contain this element. At 
the present time chemists enumerate quite a number of acids 
which are destitute of oxygen, and many circumstances tend 
to favor the view that hydrogen is the real acidifying princi- 
ple. Oxygen is a restless, unconquerable element, and among 
the whole catalogue of simple bodies or elementary substances, 
there are none that seize, attack, change and destroy so much 
as it does. It unites with almost all other bodies with which 
it comes in contact, and changes or destroys them ; and as it 
forms a portion of the air, and most of the water, what can 
escape its presence? When it combines with any body, the 
combination is called oxidation or rusting; when it combines 
with iron, as is the case when iron is wet or damp, or heated to 
a white heat, we say the iron is rusted — the chemist says it 
oxidizes. But notwithstanding the eagerness of oxygen to 
seize upon and destroy every thing, there is an agent whose 
services are indispensable, and without whose aid oxygen en- 
tirely fails to accomplish any thing. This agent is warmth. 
If we desire to secure any object against the destructiveness 
of oxygen, all that is necessary to be done is to deprive that 
object of all warmth, and the object is accomplished ; it is some- 
what upon this principle that fruits put up in cans retain 
their freshness for a great length of time. The fruits so put. 
up must be deprived of all contact with oxygen, sealed so 
tight as not to permit the admission of the least particle of 
air; then placed where the temperature is near 32° Fahr., 
and the fruit is safe. In proof of the necessity of the absence 



1G6 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

of warmth to secure against the attack of oxygen, one circum- 
stance maybe deemed sufficiently conclusive. There are por- 
tions, and in some cases entire bodies of elephants imbedded 
in the ice in the northern portion of Siberia, and have been 
thus imbedded for thousands of years. Several years since a 
scientific corps from France visited the mouth of the river 
Lena, where the imbedded elephants are, and removed several 
entire carcasses. They found the flesh in an excellent state 
of preservation, retaining even its color in a remarkable de- 
gree ; and as soon as it became sufficiently thawed, the dogs 
that accompanied the corps ate it with great avidity. So long, 
then, as oxygen was kept at or below the freezing point, it 
could not with any success whatever attack the flesh, but as 
soon as warmth was added, all its energies were called into 
activity. 

Napoleon III, conceived the idea that flour could be com- 
pressed into a smaller space than it generally is by millers. 
A series of experiments were instituted to determine whether 
any economic advantages could be gained. The result was a 
complete confirmation of the principles taught by chemistry, 
namely, the flour which underwent the greatest compression 
contained the least atmosphere, and would consequently be in 
a better state of preservation for a greater length of time — 
other things being equal — than that put up in the ordinary 
manner. The pain from a fresh wound is chiefly to be attri- 
buted to the fact that oxygen insinuates itself into every part 
of the wounded surface. If, when a wound is first received, 
it is immediately covered with a piece of court plaster, it will 
heal without either pain or suppuration. The plaster does 
not heal the wound, but it keeps the wounded parts in juxta- 
position, and at the same time excludes the oxygen, and pre- 
vents it from irritating the affected surfaces, thus affording 
nature, or the vital force of the system, an opportunity of 
uniting the severed portions, or supplying that which was torn 
away ; hence the superiority of one salve, ointment or plaster 
over another is its better adaptation to exclude oxygen only. 



COMBINATIONS OF OXYGEN. 1G7 

When oxygen combines with iron, the result is a harmless 
combination — one which may be handled with the nude fin- 
gers with impunity ; but when oxygen combines with sulphur, 
the resultant combination is not quite so harmless, but is 
known as sulphuric acid, or oil of vitriol, which " eats " iron, 
copper, wood, and clothing of all descriptions. 

When oxygen combines with metallic bases, the resultant 
compounds are called oxides, and are recognized by chemists 
as alkaline bases. But when oxygen combines with non- 
metallic bases, then the result is an acid ; thus, when oxygen 
combines with sulphur, the product is sulphuric acid ; with 
silicon, silicic acid ; with carbon, carbonic acid, etc. When 
an oxide combines with an acid, the resultant compound is a 
salt, as, for example, when oxide of iron combines with sul- 
phuric acid, the result is a green salt, known as green vitriol, 
or copperas : when oxide of copper combines with sulphuric 
acid, the result is sulphate of copper, or blue vitriol. Salt- 
peter is a combination of oxide of potassium and nitric acid ; 
the elements of the same acid combined in a different propor- 
tion constitute our atmosphere. Acids are excellent agents 
to clean oxydized or " rusted " metallic surfaces, because the 
acid combines with the oxide and forms a salt which is readily 
removed. 

Oxygen will combine with other bodies, as before stated, 
by the agency of heat only ; but during the combination heat 
is evolved, which is a preparatory step toward forming a new 
combination. No oxygenized substance contains as much 
heat as the non-oxygenized. In every oxydation heat is 
evolved, and the greater the heat, the larger the amount of 
matter that combines with oxygen. Oxygen is a gas, and if 
the combining body is gaseous also, then the combination 
may take place instantly, and heat to such a degree be evolved 
as to emit light; this preparatory combustion is called burn- 
ing, and the light of the heat is called fire; hence it is evident 
that the combination of any body with oxygen is a combus- 



168 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

tion, because the combining body becomes changed and heat 
lias been evolved, not at all times, and in some instances at 
no time to such a degree as to be lighted or ignited ; but the 
process is nevertheless a slow burning. Oxydized iron is ac- 
cording to this view nothing more than iron slowly burned; 
decayed wood is wood slowly burned ; and decomposing flesh 
is nothing more than flesh being slowly burned. Oxygen is 
the factor which returns all substances to the earth whence 
they were taken, and the process by which materials arc re- 
turned or converted into their original elements is combusjtion. 
Oxygen is indispensably necessary for supporting respira- 
tion, animal heat and life being dependent upon a gradual 
combustion in the system. 

Nitrogen, 

Nitrogen is a transparent gas, without color, odor or taste. 
It is distinguished for its negative properties, that is, it will 
neither support life nor combustion, but appears to act simply 
as a diluent to the oxygen of the atmosphere, of which latter 
it appears to constitute about four-fifths. It is not inflamma- 
ble, but on the reverse, if a lighted taper be plunged into it, 
the taper will immediately be extinguished. It is a little 
lighter than atmospheric air. It will not support vegetation 
alone, and animals soon die when placed in it. It is, however, 
an essential ingredient of all animal tissues, and of all such, 
vegetable products as can be converted into blood in the ani- 
mal body ; also of the vegetable bases and other vegetable 
compounds, such as indigo, etc. It can not be made to unite 
directly with any element, and only forms combinations when 
one or both elements are in the nascent state. It is, therefore, 
unlike the other metalloids, in a high degree chemically in- 
different or neutral. But under favorable circumstances, it 
does combine with most of the metalloids and with several 
metals. However, its most important compounds are those 
with oxygen, and w T ith hydrogen. Among the latter, the 



HYDROGEN AND CHLORINE. 169 

most prominent is ammonia, a substance with which all are 
familiar, by smell at least, who have had occasion to go to 
stables or places where animals, more especially horses, are 
kept and littered at night. The smell arising from the urine 
of animals is peculiar, affecting the nostrils not only in a 
pungent, but in a pricking manner. Others are familiar with 
it under the name of spirits of hartshorn, or volatile alkali, 
which is ammonia combined with water. It possesses strongly 
alkaline or basic properties, and neutralizes the strongest 
acids ; hence it is of great importance to the agriculturist. 

Hydrogen. 

Hydrogen is a gas, colorless, tasteless, and when quite pure, 
devoid of smell, but as it does not exist uncombined in a 
state of nature, it must be prepared from substances which 
contain it in considerable quantities. It forms eleven per cent, 
of water by weight, and is found in many minerals, all ani- 
mals, and all vegetables. It is eminently combustible, but 
will not support either combustion or animal life. Hydrogen 
gas is not absorbed by water, neither does it combine so readily 
with other bodies as oxygen does. It may be made, however, 
to combine with most of the metalloids, and with a few of the 

metals. 

Chlorine. 

This element was discovered in 1774 by Scheele. It is 
never found free, but in combination with some other element 
only ; it is a very poisonous, corrosive, yellow-colored gas, 
causing very great irritation when breathed, even when largely 
diluted with common atmosphere. It is now extensively used 
in bleaching establishments, but as it is a very powerful 
agent, if not carefully used, the texture of the goods will be 
destroyed, and become quite rotten. From this cause com- 
mon writing paper is often found to be quite useless, the rags 
from which it was made having been too strongly saturated 
with chlorine while in the bleaching process. Chlorine readily 
combines with the metals, and most of the other elements to 
15 



170 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

form a series of compounds, called chlorides. When com- 
bined with hydrogen, it loses all these peculiar powers, and 
forms a strong acid — the muriatic — which, by combining with 
bases, forms a series of salts called muriates. 

Chlorine is especially found in the straw or leaves of our 
cultivated plants. Its quantity is also considerable in the 
stalks, leaves and roots of the bulb-producing plants. In the 
ashes of the grains or seeds of our cultivated plants, it sel- 
dom exceeds one per cent. Way, however, found six to eight 
per cent, in the ashes of the barley straw. 

Ammonia. 

Ammonia is the next important substance essential to the 
growth and development of the plant. Ammonia is a com- 
bination of hydrogen and nitrogen, and occurs in the atmo- 
sphere as carbonate of ammonia, in mineral waters as chloride 
of ammonia — it also occurs in brook, spring and rain-water ; 
the common yellow clay will yield ammonia when heated after 
having been exposed to the action of the atmosphere. Am- 
monia is found in animal secretions and excrements ; in fact, 
carbonate of ammonia was at first very extensively manufac- 
tured in Egypt from Camel's dung.* 

Competent chemists state that there is a sufficient amount 
of ammonia contained in rain-water to supply the growing- 
crops ; but should the supply fail from drought, then the sup- 
ply is undoubtedly obtained from the soil, either from the 
barn -yard manure, the clay or the lime ; for there is scarcely 
a limestone in existence which will not, under certain chemi- 
cal processes, yield ammonia. Decaying animal bodies emit 

* Ammoniacal liquor or gas liquor is extensively obtained in the con- 
densing vessels of coal-gas works. Some agriculturists who were aware 
of the importance of ammonia in the growth of vegetables, have been 
impressed with an idea that the application of gas liquor to growing 
crops would have a favorable effect. I know of no instance in which 
the hopes of the experimenter were realized. Gas liquor contains car- 
bonate, hydrocyanate, hydrosulphate and sulphate of ammonia. 



AMMONIA IN THE SOIL. 



171 



ammonia, that is, "whenever the decomposition of animal sub- 
stances is effected with the assistance of water, their nitrogen 
is invariably liberated in the form of ammonia. Liebig says 
this is a fixed rule without any exceptions, whatever may be 
the causes which produce the decompositions. All organic 
compounds evolve the whole of their nitrogen in the form of 
ammonia when acted on by alkalies. It is well known that 
all "wheat" and "potato" soils contain alkalies; hence, 
whenever nitrogenous manures are introduced, there is speedi- 
ly as much ammoniacal salts produced as the growing vege- 
tation may require. In 1846, Dr. Krocker, of Germany, 
examined a number of soils to determine the amount of am- 
monia which they contained. Annexed are the results of his 
investigations in tabular form : 

TABLE OF THE AMMONIA CONTAINED IN THE SOIL. 

BY DR. KROCKER. 



Soils Examined. 



Clay soil, before manuring 

Clay soil 

Surface soil, at Hohenheim 

Subsoil of the same field 

Clay soil, before manuring 

Clay soil, before manuring 

Clay ready to be sowed with barley.. 

Clay soil, before manuring 

Loamy soil, before manuring 

Loamy soil, before manuring 

Earth from America, never manured. 

Sandy soil, never cultivated 

Loamy earth, dug out 

Sandy soil, never cultivated 

Nearly pure sand. 



Marl 



Ammonia in 

100 parrs of 

Earth dried 

in the Air. 




0.170 
0.163 
0.156 

0.101 

0.149 

0.117 

0.113 

0.139 

0.135 

0.133 

0.116 

0.096 

0.088 

0.056 

0.031 

0.0988 

0.0955 

0.0768 

0.0736 

0.0579 

0.0077 

0.0047 



Specific 
Gravity. 



2.39 
2.42 
2.40 
2.41 
2.41 
2.41 
2.44 
2.41 
2.15 
2.45 
2.18 
2.50 
2.50 
2.51 
2.61 



■{ 2.42 



Ammonia in 

a stratum of 

solid Matter 

0.25 meter 

thick, on 1 

hectare, in 

pounds 



20314 

10723 

18730 

12532 

17053 

17713 

17116 

16719 

16537 

1H292 

12611 

12000 

11000 

7028 

4015 

11952 

11552 

9288 

8001 

7001 

931 

568 



172 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Porous substances have the power, as a general thing, of 
condensing ammonia ; hence soils condense and retain it till 
called into actien by water or carbonic acid to be assimilated, 
and form a portion of the growing plant. It is capable of 
undergoing quite a number of transformations when in con- 
tact with other bodies. When pure it is extremely soluble in 
water ; it forms soluble compounds with all the acids, when in 
contact with certain other substances it is capable of assuming 
the most various and opposite forms, in which one would not 
suspect so caustic an alkali was participating. Chemistry 
teaches that formate of ammonia, under the influence of a 
high temperature, changes into hydrocyanic acid and water, 
without the separation of any of -its elements. Ammonia 
forms urea, with cyanic acid, and a series of crystalline com- 
pounds with the volatile oils of mustard and bitter almonds. 

Humus. 

Much has been written upon the influence of humus upon 
the growth of plants, and it is highly probable that very little 
is absolutely known of its importance, or manner of action. 
Humus has been defined by chemists to be vegetable sub- 
stances in a state of decay, as roots of crops, dead leaves, etc. 
Those who have paid especial attention to its action, and have 
conducted experiments with no other object in view than to 
ascertain the part it plays, have reluctantly concluded that, in 
the form in which it exists in the soil, it does not yield the 
least particle of nourishment to the plant. It is well known 
that vegetable mold forms a rich soil, and that plants grow 
rapidly and attain a much greater size in spots where much 
vegetable matter has decayed, or is in an advanced state of 
decay ; investigators, therefore, were much disappointed when 
they found that humus yielded no nutriment directly to the 
plant. But it is of the utmost importance as a constant 
source of carbonic acid. Woody fiber, chips, roots of crops 
or decaying leaves, when moist, convert the oxygen gas with 
which they come in contact into an equal volume of carbonic 



HUMIC ACID. 173 

acid. Very few soils which contain vegetable matter, are so 
compact as to exclude the atmosphere ; there is thus a con- 
stant conversion of oxygen into carbonic acid, and it is not 
improbable that in compact soils the plant itself absorbs oxy- 
gen from the atmosphere, for the purpose of having it con- 
verted into carbonic acid, by bringing it into contact with the 
vegetable matter. When we loosen the soil which surrounds 
the young plants, we favor the access of air, and as a matter 
of course we accelerate the formation of carbonic acid ; in 
this consists the great benefit of "hoeing" or "cultivating" 
plants. 

Humic substances all contain, naturally, water and ammo- 
nia in various proportions, and occur in black turfs, soil and 
root. From humus is obtained an acid called humic acid, 
which has a great tendency to absorb ammonia, and holds it 
so firmly that even by boiling with carbonate of soda it does 
not escape. The best agricultural chemists are, however, of 
opinion that no humic acid is found in the soils. The action^ 
of humus then is merely to furnish a supply of carbonic acid, \ 
and hasten the development of the plant ; as it is a law in 
vegetable physiology, that when the food of a plant is in 
greater quantity than its organs require for their own perfect 
development the superfluous nutriment is employed in the 
formation of new organs, that is, new roots and fibrils, new 
branches, leaves, etc. Hence wheat tillers or stools most 
when sown in good soil, and protected by a good covering of -f 
snow. 

The position that humus, as such, is of no importance 
whatever, or that very excellent crops can be grown without 
it, is strikingly illustrated by the fertile soil around Naples. 
Those who have traveled there state that the farms and villa- 
ges are situated from eighteen to twenty-four miles from one 
another, there being no roads leading from the one to the 
other, consequently there has been no transportation of 
manure. The cereals have been cultivated there for many 
hundreds of years — perhaps thousands, without any restora- 



174 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

tion being made to the soil of any part of that which has 
been removed from it. And yet these lands are famous for 
the abundant crops they bear, while there is no proof positive 
that any humus was ever contained in the soil. On the other 
hand, wheat does not thrive in many parts of Brazil, where 
the soils are particularly rich in this substance ; or in our 
own climate where soils are formed of moldered wood, that 
its stalk under these circumstances attains no strength, and 
droops prematurely. It is well known that the strength of 
the stalk is due to silicate of potash, and that wheat, as well 
as all other cereals, require certain phosphates which are not 
found in a soil containing humus in a great proportion. 
Therefore, wheat grown in soils rich in humus have tender 
stalks, diminutive heads and no seeds. 

Humus is said to be absolutely insoluble in pure cold 
water, but is soluble when combined with oxygen, and in that 
condition is taken up by water as carbonic acid. 

Mulder includes among the substances which fix the ammo- 
nia in a rich soil, the five acids which he discovered in the 
humus, namely ulmic, humic, geic, crenic and apocrenic acids, 
The acids which are formed during the decay of animal as 
well as vegetable substances, decompose the carbonate of am- 
monia which is conveyed to the soil by rain, and having thus 
become soluble, are transferred, in the form of ammoniacal salts, 
to the roots of plants, where they are rapidly decomposed 
(even in the extreme end of the root fibrils) and are convert- 
ed into other bodies. 

When any of the above mentioned acids are found in the soil, 
they are generally united with bases, especially with ammonia. 
They should perhaps be regarded as the products of different 
stages of "decay, because as the process of decay does not cease, 
organic constituents are subject to a constant change ; thus by 
the oxidation of ulmic acid arises humic acid ; from humic 
acid geic acid, and in like manner, by the oxidation of geic 
acid, crenic acid may be formed. The constitution of these 
matters is expressed by the following empirical formulae : 



COMPOSITION OF ACIDS. 175 

Ulmin C.40 H. 1G 0.14 

Ulmic acid C.40 H. 14 0.12 

Humin C.40 11.15 0.15 

Humic acid C.40 H. 12 0.12 

Geic acid C.40 H. 12 0.14 

Crenic acid C. 24 H. 15 0.19 

Apocrenic acid C. 48 H. 22 0.24 

Of these substances crenic acid is soluble in water ; apo- 
crenic, ulmic, and humic acid dissolve in alkalies ; ulmin and 
humin are insoluble in water and in alkalies ; but to a certain 
extent they can be made soluble by being changed into ulmic 
and humic acids. 



176 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

, NUTRITION OF THE WHEAT PLANT. 

This brief description of inorganic substances, enumerated 
in the preceding chapter, most all of which are invariably 
found in the ashes of the wheat plant and its fruit, has been 
deemed necessary, from the fact that those most deeply inter- 
ested in the culture of the wheat plant, have the least oppor- 
tunity to become familiar with elements whose operations they 
witness daily, and whose individual functions can not be de- 
termined by simply plowing and seeding. 

A description has now been given of the constituents of the 
wheat plant, as well as hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen as 
organic elements, and silica, alumina, potash, soda, lime, mag- 
nesia, sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid and chlorine as inor- 
ganic elements. By what process has the plant extracted these 
different elements from the soil ? By what intelligence or 
instinct is it guided in selecting the proper and rejecting the 
improper elements? These and similar questions are ever 
demanding our attention, but physiological chemistry is not 
sufficiently matured to furnish positive intelligence upon the 
points necessarily involved, notwithstanding great, nay, really 
giant strides have been made in this direction by Liebig and 
his co-laborers, yet in many cases conjecture is obliged to 
supply the place which should be occupied by certainty. 

These conjectures may prove of great service to the agricul- 
turist if he will accept them as conjectures only, and not re- 
gard them as ascertained facts, upon which he may rely with 
certainty, in his practical operations. It may not be inappro- 
priate to state what is known with certainty, and what methods 
have been adopted to ascertain not only the functions per- 
formed by the different portions of the plant, but the processes 



CELLULOSE. 177 

of growth and assimilation of the earthy, mineral, and other 
substances which constitute a part of the plant. 

In Chapter VII. I have endeavored to state clearly and fully 
the entire process of germination, chemical and physical, to- 
gether with functions performed by the roots and other parts 
of the plants, until it arrived at that stage when the parent 
store of food was exhausted, and it was obliged to seek the 
nourishment, for its future growth and existence, from the 
surrounding inorganic substances. The present, and two suc- 
ceeding chapters, will be devoted to some of the phenomena 
of the growth of plants, and experiments of growing plants 
in artificial or entirely inorganic soils. 

Every day observation teaches, and experience confirms, that N 
in order to live and grow, plants must obtain nourishment. 
An opinion was long prevalent that plants existed and assimi- 
lated nutriment from the atmosphere, and that the inorganic 
elements found in the ashes of plants were purely " accidental" 

"Plants," says Berzelius (Handbuch, 1839, p. 77), "obtain 
the material for their growth from the earth and the air, which 
are both alike indispensable to them. The earthy part ap- 
pears to exert on plants no other influence except only a 
mechanical one." 

" According to the doctrines advocated by De Saussure and 
Sprengle, which were prevalent up to 1840, vegetable and ani- 
mal life depended on the circulation of organic matter, formerly 
endowed with vitality. When all the remains of dead plants 
and animals in cultivated land had been set in motion, brought 
into the circulation, and in this way rendered available, an 
increase of produce by cultivation, beyond this limit, was no 
longer possible, nor an increase of the population conceiv- 
able." — Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society. 

But these "accidental" occurrences, like Hamlet's madness, 
seemed to have a method or uniformity about them which led 
to the promulgation and adoption of the theory that plants 
possessed the power of changing, or converting one substance 
into another, for example, that they could extract silica, and 



178 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

convert it into potash, where silica abounded in the soil and 
potash was deficient, and that on the contrary they could con- 
vert potash into silica, when silica was deficient. This theory 
was found untenable when it was discovered that the most 
abundant crops could not be grown on all descriptions of soil. 
Were the powers of the plant such as this theory supposes, then a 
soil composed of pure clay, or of pure sand, must be equally as 
fertile as a soil containing all the inorganic elements found in 
the wheat plant. But experience proves that every inorganic 
element found in the ashes of the wheat plant is essentially 
necessary to the proper growth and full development of the 
plant. Although lime forms less than one pound of the ashes 
of one thousand pounds of the wheat grain, yet this almost 
infinitesimal amount is just as essential, and of as much abso- 
lute importance to the health, growth and maturity of the 
plant as is the silica which is found to be almost five times the 
amount of the lime. As already stated, the plant has not the 
power of supplying deficiencies of the soil ; and to this one 
fact may in a great degree be attributed the necessity for the 
various species, genera, order and families of plants. When 
the soil does not contain the necessary and appropriate ele- 
ments for a certain plant, it fails to grow ; but some other 
plant, to whose growth and development the wanting element 
is of no importance, will flourish on that spot. The reason 
why pitch pine and the sugar maple do not flourish on the 
same soil, is very obvious from an examination of the inor- 
ganic constituents of their respective ashes : 

MAPLE. PITCH PINE. 

Silica 0.40 Silica 7.50 

Potash 4.62 Potash 14.10 

Soda 2.90 Soda 20.75 

Lime 41.33 Lime 13.60 

Magnesia 6.42 Magnesia 4.35 

Phosphate of Iron 78 Phosphate of Iron 11.10 

Phosphate of Lime 4.64 Phosphate of Lime* , 2.75 

rhosphate of Magnesia 0.74 Phosphate of Magnesia 90 

Sulphuric acid 1.22 Sulphuric acid 3.45 

Carbonic acid 35.90 Carbonic acid 17.50 



INORGANIC ELEMENTS IN PLANTS. 179 

"While the maple requires less than one-half of one per 
cent, of the amount of its ashes of silica, the pine requires 
seven and a half per cent. ; nearly half of the ashes of the 
maple consist of lime, while little more than one-eighth of the 
pine ashes are of the same element. But the pine assimilates 
fourteen times as much phosphate of iron as does the maple. 

The vine will not flourish where there is no lime in the soil, 
while wheat requires a soil rich in phosphates. Tobacco, the 
walnut tree and celery leaves, contain saltpetre. Shceph ob- 
tained four grammes of crystalized saltpetre, from one hun- 
dred grammes of coarse stems of the tobacco plant. There 
are many facts which might with propriety be introduced to 
prove the absolute necessity for inorganic elements ; as well as 
the peculiar influences which some inorganic elements exer- 
cise over some of the plants grown upon soils containing 
them. Carbonate of lime is found to exist in the superficial 
cells of some varieties of chara. * On the Galmei Hills, near 
Aix la Chapelle, is found the Viola lutea caliminaria, which 
owes the peculiar color of its flowers to the presence of zinc, f 
The reason why the tea grown upon the island of Java is not 
pleasant nor of so good a quality is because of the excessive 
amount of salts of iron in the soil. Several attempts have 
been made to grow the tea plant in the southern portions of 
the United States, but the failure to produce as good an arti- 
cle as that from China must be attributed to the soil. J It is 
a well known fact that in China the cotton is naturally of the 
color known as " nankin " — a light orange, caused by the salts 
of iron in the soil ; seeds from the Chinese cotton plant have 
been planted and grown in the United States, but the cotton 

* Ballingrodt. f Pay en. 

X This is undoubted true so far as quality is concerned, but tea culture 
can not be made profitable in the United States, for the reason that labor 
is too expensive. In China a tea gardener receives wages at the rate of 
about one dollar per month, and " boards himself." Any person, whether 
male or female, free or slave, competent to be a tea gardener can obtain 
a better remuneration for services than obtains in China. 



180 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

had exchanged its " nankin " color for that of the cultivated 
Carolina cotton. In experiments conducted by Mr. Daubeny, 
he states that he found barley would assimilate three times as 
much potash as it would soda, notwithstanding many com- 
pounds containing soda in excess were added to the soil. A 
heath plant {Erica earned), growing abundantly in the plains 
in the valley of the Lech river, is remarkable for the great 
proportion of lime which it assimilates, while another heath 
plant (calluna vulgaris), closely related, but of a different spe- 
cies from the former, growing on the hill-sides of the Lech is 
equally remarkable for the amount of silica which it contains.* 
Struve found 100 parts of the ashes of equisetum hyemale to 
consist of 97 parts of silicic acid. If further proof were needed 
that plants require inorganic substances as their chief source 
of nutrition, a reference to the example of the lichen, or moss 
growing on the bare rock, may with propriety be made. The 
moss obtains its nutriment entirely from the rock which it de- 
composes, except it shall be demonstrated that plants receive 
nutritive substances or elements from the atmosphere. Saus- 
sure and others have proved that the seeds of beans, Phaseo- 
lus vulgaris, of peas, and of garden cresses, germinate and 
even grow to a certain extent in moist sand or moistened horse 
hair ; but the plants began to droop as soon as the mineral 
substances contained in the seeds were exhausted ; and not- 
withstanding some of them even bloomed, they could not pos- 
sibly produce seeds, for the reason that the constituents essen- 
tial for the formation of seeds were entirely absent. 

'• When we reflect that no plant can exist independently of 
certain mineral constituents, and that these occur only in cer- 
tain definite quantities, and that some bases only, such as soda 
or potash, lime or magnesia occur in plants — and when finally 
we observe that these mineral substances are accumulated in 
very different proportions in the various organs of plants, and 
in accordance with the different periods of their development, 

* Roethe. 



HOW do PLANTS GROW? 181 

although they present tolerably uniform relations under simi- 
lar conditions and in identical organs — we are necessarily led 
to the idea that these substances exert a definite influence 
upon the life of the whole plant, and upon the origin of its 
organic constituents from carbonic acid, water and ammonia." 
— Lehman. 

Plants undoubtedly have the inherent or vital power to im- 
bibe and exhale the atmosphere, or in other words plants breathe ; 
but this breathing process is by no means a rmtritive one to 
either plants or animals ; yet it is essentially necessary to both 
to enable them to assimilate substances for nutritive purposes 
which have been received within their respective organizations. 

How does the plant obtain its nutriment from the soil ; and 
if it is nourished by inorganic or mineral substances only, 
how or by what process are these rocky and earthy substances 
dissolved and liquefied so that they may be absorbed by the 
plant? 

A summary abstract has already been given of Mr. Osborne's 
observations and experiments ; but it must be borne in mind 
that his experiments extended no further than the growth of 
the plant, until the period of the exhaustion of the albumin- 
ous body, or the amount of nutriment prepared by the parent 
plant for the existence and development of the embryo, until 
it had attained sufficient growth to elaborate nutriment from 
the soil. His observations and experiments extend no further 
then than the period during which the embryo or foetus re- 
ceives its nourishment from the parent through the umbilical 
cord. The plant must now be considered as having the um- 
bilicus severed, and commencing life on its own account — 
dependent for its nourishment — its daily bread — on its own 
industry. 

By what process do the roots absorb moisture or liquids 
from the soil? Physiological botanists are divided in opinion 
upon this question. While the one party affirms that the 
plant is endowed with vitality, and that this vitality is suffici- 
ently powerful and manifest to abrorb by inspiration (mean- 



182 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ing a vitalized capillary attraction), another party as confidently 
asserts that the plant receives its nutriment from the soil by 
endosmosis (inside impulsion), thus practically denying to the 
plant all vitality, because the process of the endosmosis and 
exosmosis is a purely mechanical one. It may not be inap- 
propriate in this connection to detail the process and experi- 
ment of endosmosis and exosmosis. Take a glass tube of any 
convenient length, and firmly tie a piece of bladder over one 
end of the tube ; if the tube be now partially filled with a 
strong solution of common table salt, it will be found that the 
solution will not penetrate through the epidermis, in case the 
tube is suspended in the air. But if the tube be inserted 
into a vessel containing pure water, the solution of the salt 
will be found to have permeated the bladder and impregnated 
the pure water with a saline taste ; at the same time the vol- 
ume of the solution in the tube will have been augmented by 
the pure water penetrating the bladder and commingling with 
the saline solution. The act of the pure water, or outside ele- 
ment finding its way through a membrane or integument so as 
to commingle or be assimilated with the inside element is 
termed endosmosis ; while the reverse act (although simultane- 
ous) is termed the exosmosis; but both these actions are purely 
mechanical, because they may be successfully performed by 
substances entirely devoid of any vitality. 

The doctrine of endosmose has undoubtedly obtained con- 
siderable support from the well known fact, that plants absorb 
indiscriminately all substances held in solution in water ; but 
then they give off through their roots (Liebig, Mulder, Lch- 
maii), or through other parts, all matters which may injure 
their vital activity. If plants possessed the power of select- 
ing or absorbing such substances only as were essential to 
their growth and development, the problem of nutrition would 
be one of comparatively easy solution ; but as they do not 
possess this power the problem is exceeding complex, and with 
the most diligent research, assiduous investigation and obser- 
vation our knowledge of the relations existing in the nutritive 



PLANTS HAVE A VITAL FORCE. 183 

process of vegetable organisms is so very circumscribed and 
imperfect " that it is much less easy to establish a convincing 
refutation than to adduce a strict proof." 

It is, however, a fact established beyond successful contra- 
diction that the roots of plants absorb moisture and liquids 
from the soil, and that the functions of the roots are other 
than a mere support to retain the plant immovably, and in an 
upright position. The fluids are unquestionably drawn from 
the soil by the roots under the influence of a vital force or 
power, and not a mechanical one, for were the doctrine of en- 
dosmosis correct, it is not very obvious that there could be any 
annual plants, or that roots would decay, without being re- 
moved from the place where they grew. 

Isert, a Danish physician, discovered that in a vessel filled 
with water, in which the tropical plant Pistia Stratiotes was 
growing, evaporation took place six times as rapidly, or rather it 
evaporated six times as much water, as did a vessel of water of 
the same size in which no plant whatever was growing. This 
then is proof positive that plants absorb water, and that it is 
exhaled by them. Moleschott in his "Circuit of Life," says 
that this evaporation is one of the most powerful causes of 
the absorption of elements in solution, by the roots of plants. 
Liebig says, " From the surface of young plants a constant 
evaporation of water takes place, the amount of which is in 
proportion to the temperature and surface. The numerous 
fibers of the roots supply the water which is evaporated, just 
as if they were so many pumps ; so that as long as the soil 
continues moist, the plants receive, by means of water, the 
necessary constituents of the soil. A plant with double the 
surface of another plant must evaporate twice the quantity of 
water that the latter does. The water thus absorbed is ex- 
pelled again in vapor, but the salts and constituents of the soil 
introduced to the plant by its agency still remain there." 

I have never been fully persuaded that the view taken by 
Moleschott, Liebeg or Lehman, in this relation, is correct. 
It has always appeared to me that evaporation from surfaces 



184 THE WHEAT 1'LAXT. 

of plants was a consequence, rather than a cause — that it was 
the method adopted by nature to relieve the plant of an ex- 
cess of moisture as well as a means by which effete matter is 
removed. How can evaporation take place from plants which 
have no evaporating surfaces? It is well known that the 
green parts of plants, leaves, buds and flowers are the only por- 
tions from which evaporation takes place ; how then can evap- 
oration in spring-time before the buds have swollen, be the 
cause of absorption of fluids from the soil by the roots, so as 
to cause the flow of sap? so as to cause grapevines if injured 
to bleed? But so far as the wheat plant is concerned, is it an 
established fact that evaporation takes place from the leaves, 
before the roots have absorbed fluids from the soil ? 

This theory of evaporation as the cause of absorption of 
fluids by the roots of plants advanced by Liebig, amplified by 
Moleschott, and partially although evidently hesitatingly in- 
dorsed by Lehman, while it is more plausible and really less 
objectionable than the theory of endosmosis, is perhaps equally 
distant from the truth, because it ignores any and all vital 
actions or participancy by the plant itself. 

Considering the use that has been made of the known phys- 
ical forces for explaining the absorption of liquids from the 
soil, the ascent of the sap, and also its descending course, 
Monsieur Trecul was surprised that no analogous experiment 
had been made in order to account for the absorption of the 
gases drawn from the atmosphere. Nevertheless, this latter 
faculty of plants, which authors have been content with indi- 
cating, is not less important than the absorption of liquids by 
the roots. But it has not been capable of explanation by the 
ordinary laws of physics. He attempts to prove that the inspi- 
ration by the roots, and the movements of liquids in plants, 
can not be effected under the influence of the physical forces 
to which such an important part is still ascribed, namely cap- 
illarity and endosmose. Even those physiologists who ascribe 
a great part in the ascent of the sap to capillarity, and espe- 
cially to endosmose, are compelled to admit that they are 



ENDOSMOTIC THEORY UNTENABLE. 185 

incapable of raising liquids to the hight of our trees, withou' 
the aid of the evaporation which takes place in the leaves, and 
which, as they say, draws the liquids toward those organs. If 
evaporation causes the liquids to rise, it must prevent them 
from descending : now they descend after arising ; therefore 
evaporation does not assist in their elevation. I also think 
that Nature never makes use of insufficient causes like endos- 
mose capillarity; and on the other hand, the part attributed 
to endosmose is incompatible with the constitution of plants. 

Suppose for a moment, with the physiologists, that it is en- 
dosmose which causes liquids to rise by the ligneous mass, and 
afterward to descend by the bark. In order that this phe- 
nomenon should be accomplished, the density of the juices 
must constantly increase as they rise (this is what has been 
observed) ; and this density must also increase in passing 
through the leaves from the ligneous mass to the bark and in 
descending from cell to cell in the interior of the cortical tissue. 
We could not, moreover, recur exclusively to gravitation, see- 
ing that there are pendent branches as well as erect ones. 

The botanists who admit the endosmotic theory have not 
remarked that they have thus, side by side, two currents of 
liquids of different densities ; they have not noticed that the 
ascending sap, being less dense than the descending, would 
necessarily be attracted by the latter, as the membranes are 
permeable ; they have not considered that throughout the 
whole length of the trunk there would necessarily be a hori- 
zontal, centrifugal current, until an equilibrium of density was 
established, and that then the double ascending and descend- 
ing current could not exist. As this is not the case, the en- 
dosmotic theory is erroneous. A force distinct from endos- 
mose must therefore preside over the absorption of the liquids 
drawn from the soil, as well as over that of the gases taken 
from the atmosphere. And thus there are in plants other 
movements than that of the ascending and descending sap. 
This sap, in its course, gives off into all the cells the 

16 



186 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

substances necessary for their nutrition. These cells assimilate 
the elements which they require, and reject those which are 
useless to them. The rejected elements are taken up by the 
laticiferous vessels, or collected into peculiar reservoirs, like 
the essential oils, etc. These reservoirs, however, do not con- 
tain a liquid of greater density for which these essential oils 
have an affinity. Here again, therefore, endosmose has no 
part in the movement of the liquids. 

The tendency to admit purely physical causes to explain 
physiological phenomena is again observed with regard to the 
spongiole ; for this extremity of the root has been compared 
to a sponge, as is indicated by its name. Let us see, there- 
fore, how far this comparison is exact. 

The young tissues, the formation of which causes the 
elongation of the roots, are protected during their develop- 
ment by a sort of little cap, which for this reason are called 
pileorhiza. It actually envelopes the extremity of the root 
like a cap. This organ may be easily observed, especially 
upon the roots of aquatic plants, because in these the devel- 
opment is more rapid than in most other plants. This cap 
adheres to the extremity of the root by the interior of its 
apex ; it is from this point that it is renewed, while its outer 
part, which is oldest, becomes destroyed. The external cells 
becoming disaggregated, could alone have given the idea of a 
little sponge. With regard to the power of absorption, which, 
at least in certain plants, is much stronger at the extremity 
of the root than in other parts of that organ, it evidently can 
not be assimilated to the capillary phenomena which cause 
liquids to rise in a sponge. The word spongiole, therefore, 
gives a false idea of that which really takes place in roots. 

Some botanists who admit the spongiole, have nevertheless 
recognized the existence, on the surface of many roots, of 
prominent cells to which they attribute a share in absorption. 
In trees with a vigorous vegetation, such as the Paulowniy, 
it has been observed in the spring, that the dead part of the 
bark was impregnated with a considerable quantity of liquid, 



CIRCULATION IN PLANTS. 187 

which would probably be yielded to the living parts of the 
root. 

The liquids absorbed by the roots, by the agency of that 
force which we only know by its effects, namely, life, are con- 
veyed into the ligneous mass of these organs, and thence into 
that of the stem. These juices rise into the leaves, and then 
they descend toward the roots describing a sort of circle. As 
they pass through the whole extent of the plant, I think it 
would be advisable to call this the great circulation, and to 
give the name of venous circulation to that which, by the la- 
ticiferous vessels, conducts the substances which the cells have 
not assimilated to the true vessels. There is also an intracel- 
lular movement which has been observed in many vegetables. 
This movement has received the name of rotation, because the 
juices appear to turn upon themselves, with more or less 
regularity, in the interior of each cell. 

During the life of a plant all the liquids are in motion in 
each of the utricles of which it is composed, either to carry 
into these the elements necessary for their growth, or for the 
formation of the amylaceous, saccharine or albuminoid princi- 
ples, etc., to which they give origin, or to remove from them 
those substances which have become useless, and which 
require to be eliminated, or those which have to be carried to 
other parts of the plant to serve for the multiplication of the 
cells and the growth of the individual. It is this general 
movement that constitutes the circulation ; but this name is 
usually given to definite currents, more perceptible than this 
general intracellular movement, which traverse the plant 
through its whole length from top to bottom, and from the 
bottom to the top. 

It is to this double current that the name of the great cir- 
culation is given. The vtnous circulation takes place, as above 
stated, in the laticiferous vessels. 

The great circulation is observed in all vascular plants ; but 
the laticiferous vessels have not yet been detected in all plants 
which possess vessels. 



188 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The great circulation, therefore, consists of an ascending 
current of the sap, and of a descending current. The ascend- 
ing current takes place in the vessels which receive and 
elaborate the juices drawn from the soil by the roots. When 
this ascent commences, all the cells are at work. The nutri- 
tive substances which they contain arrange themselves by 
assimilation. Starch, dissolved, no doubt, by diastase, and 
converted into sugar, as has been stated on a previous page, is 
carried to the parts where the cellular multiplication is to 
take place. The starch of the base of the buds serves for the 
alimentation of the latter ; that of the bark passes into the 
internal cells of that part of the plant, which very probably 
also receives some by the medullary rays. It is under the 
influence of these nutritive materials that the increase in 
diameter by the multiplication of cells commences. This 
multiplication at starting really takes place without the aid 
of the sap elaborated by the leaves, for in many of our trees 
the layer of young cells (generative layer, also called cam- 
bium) acquires a considerable thickness before the appearance 
of the leaves. 

These first phenomena make their appearance with the ascent 
of the sap. This, in rising, undergoes an elaboration with which 
we are not sufficiently acquainted to speak of at greater length ; 
I shall content myself with indicating the beautiful experi- 
ments of M. Biot, which have shown us the changes which 
sugar undergoes during the progress of this sap. During its 
ascent it already contains assimilable principles which may 
assist in the nutrition of the leaves and buds (in which the 
spiral vessels make their appearance from below upward) ; 
but in the spring these buds are indebted for their first devel- 
opment, especially to the alimentary substances amassed in 
the neighboring cells. 

The sap, which on its way takes part in the nutrition of 
the first organs developed, arrives in the leaves, in the green 
parenchyma of which it is submitted to a fresh elaboration, 
or in the chlorophyll-cells of the stem of the fleshy plants 



ABSORPTION OF SAP. 189 

destitute of leaves. The carbonic acid of the air is absorbed 
and then decomposed during the day ; its carbon is retained 
by the sap, and its oxygen in great part rejected. The sap, 
thus modified under the influence of respiration, takes its 
course through the cortical cells which it nourishes. It then 
aids in the multiplication of the cells of the generative layer, 
which are produced in horizontal series. A portion of these 
cells thus horizontally multiplied forms a new layer of bark, 
the woody fibers and medullary rays ; the others are converted 
into vessels in the following manner. The excess of the de- 
scending sap which is not employed in the nutrition of the 
newly formed cells, or in thickening those first developed, 
descends through certain of the newly formed cells ; it dilates 
them, perforates them, and makes them take all the characters 
of vessels, so that these cells, whioh, during the first phase 
of their development, resembled all the others, appear subse- 
quently to be of a totally different nature. 

■It is this vascular formation which takes place, as we see, 
from above downward, at the expense of cells originating 
from a multiplication in horizontal series, that has led the 
authors of the theory of descending fibers to believe that 
these vessels, of which they did not recognize the nature, 
were true roots of the buds or leaves. 

But all the sap absorbed by the old or new cells, whether 
for their increase in size or thickness, or for the production 
of starch, albuminoid substances, etc., which are to serve for 
subsequent growth, is not used up by the cells. These only 
assimilate a part of its elements and reject the rest. It is 
this caput mortuum which, in the form of resins, essential oils, 
etc., is collected in peculiar reservoirs, from which it is after- 
ward thrown outwards ; * or the unassimilated matters are 
taken up by the laticiferous vessels, which carry them back 

*It is undoubtedly emissions of this nature and of this origin that 
constitute what are called the excretions of the roots, which agriculture 
seeks to turn to account in the rotation of crops. 



190 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

into the vessels properly so called (this is the venous circula- 
tion). There these substances, which are usually destitute of 
oxygen, are elaborated and oxidized by the action of the 
oxygen derived from the air, which penetrates even to the 
vessels by intercellular passages ; they become again fitted for 
assimilation. It would be from their oxidation, as I have 
already stated, that the carbonic acid rejected by plants during 
the night would be produced ; that which is produced during 
the day being decomposed on its passage into the leaves under 
the influence of light, its oxygen is poured out into the atmo- 
sphere, together with that arising from the decomposition of 
the carbonic acid taken directly from the air by respiration. 

All these facts prove evidently that it is the circulation which 
produces the vessels, that is to say, it is the function which 
creates the organ. 

Since the circulation exists before the vessels, when there 
are only simple cells through the walls of which the sap filters, 
the objection made by some anatomists to the existence of 
the circulation in the laticiferous vessels, an objection founded 
on the cellular structure of these vessels in certain plants, 
does not possess the importance which they assign to it, as we 
see the dotted and striped vessels, etc., formed by a current 
of sap pre-existing through imperforate cells ; and, moreover, 
these anatomists should consider that there is not a living cell 
which is not traversed by juices, although the great majority 
of these cells do not present any perforation visible by means 
of our most powerful microscopes. And then there are latici- 
ferous vessels which are evidently composed of superposed 
cells, the transverse partitions of which present very wide 
apertures. 

What is the precise function of the main root (C, fig. 8), 
whose appearance is the first obvious evidence of successful 
germination, is not known ; but it is tolerably well ascertained 
that it is entirely absorbed immediately after the rootlets have 
commenced the process of absorption. From the discoveries 
fully stated on a jjrevious page (see ante, on Germination), it 



THE SOLVENT FLUID. 191 

is highly probable tliat the rootlets convey to the capsules (E 
E E, fig. 8), a solvent fluid, or vegetable gastric juice, which 
fluid solves such inorganic substances as can not resist its 
solvent properties, and the new mass is then taken up by the 
capsules or spongioles which are found at the termini of every 
root and rootlet, and also by the absorbent cells ever formed 
at the extremities of the numberless suckers, for it is at these 
points that Mr. Osborne found the cell structure ever greedily 
taking in whatever of foreign matter he succeeded in intro- 
ducing into the media, in which the plants were grown. Mr. 
0. distinctly states that he could not trace any circulation in 
the roots toward the crown or origin of the root, but distinctly 
traced a circulation toward the capsule on the extremity of 
the rootlet. 

This gastric juice or solvent fluid may consist chiefly of 
carbonic acid, which is very essential to the growth of plants 
and has been fully detailed in the chapter on germination, is 
found to exist in the albuminous body of seed immediately 
after germination has commenced. A statement has already 
been made enumerating the different inorganic or elementary 
substances which enter into the composition of the wheat 
plant ; in order to exhibit the tenableness of the solvent fluid 
hypothesis, it will be necessary to illustrate the aflinity for or 
solvent power of carbonic acid over the elementary sub- 
stances. 

The air'which we inhale is composed of oxygen and nitro- 
gen, but what we exhale, or which is returned from the lungs, 
is composed of carbon and oxygen, or carbonic acid. Car- 
bonic acid is given off from various substances in the course 
of decay, and it exists in the atmosphere as a product of com- 
bustion — for the burning of coal, wood, or any other sub- 
stance produces carbonic acid. It exists in very considerable 
quantities in the mineral kingdom, combined with metallic 
oxides; also in all spring and river water, either in combina- 
tion with earthy and alkaline bases, or dissolved in the water 
in an uncombined state. In volcanic districts carbonic acid 



192 TILE WHEAT I>LANT. 

issues from the ground from the fissures or crevices caused by 
eruptions or earthquakes. 

Carbonic acid is also the production of fermentation and 
putrefaction. Carbonic acid being thus generally diffused 
throughout nature, is continually being introduced into the 
soil by rains. Substances containing a large proportion of 
carbon are excreted by the roots and absorbed by the soil ; in 
this manner the soil receives the greater part of the carbon it 
had yielded as food to the young plants in the form of car- 
bonic acid. After the removal of a crop of annual plants, 
their roots remain in the soil, and there undergo putrefaction, 
thus furnishing a substance which will yield carbonic acid to 
a new vegetation. The decay of woody fiber converts a 
volume of oxygen gas into an equal volume of carbonic acid ; 
— the " woody fiber in a state of decay is the substance called 
humus," and is a continued source of carbonic acid. Humus 
or vegetable mold therefore does not nourish plants by being 
assimilated in its soluble state, but by furnishing a gradual 
and continual source of carbonic acid, which is the chief nu- 
triment to the roots of plants, and is renewed as long as the 
soil admits the free access of air and moisture — these condi- 
tions being necessary to effect the decay of vegetable matter. 

The sources just enumerated furnish an ample supply of 
carbon for all the purposes of vegetation. A contrariety of 
opinions have long prevailed as to the manner in which plants 
are supplied with carbon. It is a favorite theory with some 
vegetable physiologists to attribute the supply as having been 
received entirely from the atmosphere, through the medium 
of the leaves. However plausible such a theory may be, it 
does not explain all the phenomena of vegetation which its 
advocates claim for it. It is very evident that young and 
growing plants have obtained their full proportion of mineral 
substances from the soil, from the fact that equal quantities of 
young plants yield twice the amount of ashes that matured 
plants do. Saussure found that wheat one month before blos- 
soming yielded T q§q5 when it blossomed T §g^, but after the 



HYDROGEN AND CHLORINE. 193 

ripening of the seeds it yielded only one-half this quantity 
of ashes. If, then, the theory be correct that plants obtain all 
their carbon from the atmosphere, it will be difficult to explain 
how plants should be affected by drouth, since they have al- 
ready received all they require, according to this theory, from 
the soil, and carbonic acid is rather more abundant — in the 
opinion of another set of advocates — before than after storms 
or rains, so that the plant can inhale or absorb from the at- 
mosphere all the carbon, nitrogen and oxygen requisite to 
elaborate and assimilate the mineral food. Lehman, the cele- 
brated physiological chemist, says: "The first origin of carbo- 
hydrates which we meet with in their more advanced stages of 
development, as dextrine, sugar, starch, and cellulose, has, with 
apparent correctness, been referred to the decomposition of 
carbonic acid under the influence of light." But experience 
teaches that however abundant carbonic acid may be, if there 
is a long continued absence of rain, that plants droop, wither 
and die, and will not produce the starch, sugar, etc., in the 
seeds, which they would under the influence of genial rains, 
and an adequate supply of carbonic acid, from and through 
the roots. Liebig, however, is not perfectly satisfied that 
plants receive more than one-fourth of the necessary amount 
of carbon from the atmosphere j for he says : " Young plants, 
when dependent on the air alone, can only increase their 
amount of carbon according to their absorbing surfaces. But 
it is obvious, if their roots receive, by means of humus, three 
times the amount of carbonic acid absorbed by their leaves in 
the same time, their increase in weight will be four-fold, on 
the assumption of the existence of all the conditions for the 
assimilation of the carbon. Hence four times the quantity of 
stems, leaves, and buds must be formed ; and by the increased 
surface thus obtained, the plants will receive in the same de- 
gree an increased power of absorbing food from the air." In 
the case of drouth affecting the plants, the difficulty will not 
be removed, when it is asserted that notwithstanding the plants 
receive all their carbon from the atmosphere, they receive 
17 



194 TUJrl WHEAT PLANT. 

nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen from the roots ; because it must 
be apparent to every one that it is more probable that these 
last named gases are absorbed from the atmosphere than that 
carbonic acid is ; and it is somewhat inconsistent to assert that 
the heaviest gas is absorbed by the leaves from the atmosphere, 
while the lighter one are absorbed by the roots from the soil. 

Finding the theory of supplying the plants with carbon 
from the atmosphere untenable, Prof. Henfrey * offers the fol- 
lowing, no doubt in a spirit of conciliation : " Since it is evi- 
dent that if the different external organs, such as the leaves, 
stems, and roots, can all exercise any of the functions of veg- 
etable life, the general anatomy or study of external form can 
be of little use in guiding us, and we must make ourselves 
acquainted with the characteristics of the elementary tissues 
of which any given organ is composed. To illustrate this, we 
are not liable to mistake when we say that in man and the 
higher animals respiration is performed by the lungs. We 
could not say in the same general way that the leaves consti- 
tute respiratory organs of plants, for this function is not only 
ordinarily performed in part by the green shoots of the stem, 
but in some cases, as in the Cacti, the leaves are represented 
by hard spines, and the stem assumes entirely the respiratory 
function ; and yet the Cactaceae belong to the higher class of 
plants. A-gain, the stomach and intestinal canal of animals 
in general are the organs for the absorption of food ; and this 
function is only combined with others when the whole organ- 
ization is very low in the scale ; but in plants we not uncom- 
monly see the root3 assuming additional or different functions, 
even in the highest forms of vegetable life ; for in the turnip, 
carrot, and other analogous plants, the root becomes the organ 
not simply of absorption, but for the deposition and temporary 
preservation of assimilated food." 

This statement, from the pen of Prof. Henfrey, is the more 
valuable because he is not only Professor of Botany in King's 

* Royal Agricultural Journal, Vol. XVII. 



CARBONIC ACID OBTAINED FROM THE SOIL. 195 

College, London, bat is one of the best vegetable physiologists 
of the present day. 

With the reluctant admission of Liebig that three-fourths 
of the carbonic acid required by the plant is obtained through 
the roots, and the positive statement of Henfrey that the 
leaves are not always the respiratory organs, and even if they 
were, respiratory organs are not organs of nutrition ; there 
is little hazard in asserting that the chief source of carbonic 
acid, of which the plant directly avails itself, is that obtained 
from the soil. But if there are any who think the assertion 
heterodox, and not sustained by any respectable authority, I 
will again quote Liebig. " A soil in which plants vegetate 
vigorously, contains a certain quantity of moisture indispen- 
sably necessary to their existence. Carbonic acid, likewise, is 
always present in such a soil, whether it has been abstracted 
from the air, or has been generated by the decay of vegetable 
matter. Rain and well water, and also that from other 
sources, invariably contains carbonic acid. Plants, during 
their life, constantly possess the power of absorbing by their 
roots moisture, and, along with it, air or carbonic acid." 

Besides, it is an incontrovertible fact, that plants require 
mineral substances as food and these are furnished it through 
the roots in the form of solutions. On a previous page men- 
tion has been made of the formation of clays from feldspar ; it 
is a well ascertained fact that water saturated with carbonic 
acid readily solves feldspar, so also, all minerals and rocks con- 
taining silicates of alkaline bases, are incapable of resisting 
the continued solvent action of carbonic acid dissolved in 
water. The alkalies with lime and magnesia will either dis- 
solve alone, or the former will enter into solution along with 
silica, while the alumina remains behind, mixed or combined 
with silica. Phosphate of lime is soluble in water containing 
carbonic acid. Carbonic acid in the soil then, is capable of 
solving and holding in solution potash, soda, magnesia, lime, 
silica and alumina. Is it not, therefore, exceedingly probable, 
if not absolutely certain, that because carbonic acid solves 



196 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

these elements and holds them just in the condition to be 
absorbed and assimilated by the plant through the roots, that 
the roots at the same time absorb the necessary amount of 
carbonic acid ? What evidence is there that the roots absorb 
the minerals in solution and reject the carbonic acid, when it 
is not denied by any vegetable physiologist, that the roots 
absorb indiscriminately every fluid substance presented to 
them? 

It is well known that the seeds of all cereals are chiefly 
composed of starch, that is, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen, as 
organic elements. If plants derived their carbon from the 
atmosphere, there would be no difficulty in obtaining perfect 
seeds from plants grown in water ; but experience does not 
confirm this supposition, for however well the plauts may grow 
in water, they rarely bloom, and when they do, they never pro- 
duce seed. Liebig says : " The food contained in the atmos- 
phere does not suffice to enable these plants to obtain their 
maximum size in the short period of their life. If the object of 
this culture is to be obtained, there must be present in the 
soil itself an artificial atmosphere of carbonic acid and ammo- 
nia, and this excess of nourishment which the leaves can not 
get, must be conveyed to corresponding organs existing in the 
soil." 

The chief arguments which have been presented to sustain 
the position that plants derive their carbon directly from the 
atmosphere, through the agency of the leaves, are rather in- 
ferential and negative than otherwise. One of them is, that 
because plants exhale carbonic acid at night, they consequently 
inhale it during the day, but it might, with the same pro- 
priety be inferred that because the moon shines or gives out 
rays of light at night, that it absorbs or collects them during 
the day, to dispense again at night. The fact is that it 
requires light to fix the carbon in the plant, which has been 
absorbed by the roots and leaves or other green parts. When 
daylight ceases then the decomposition of the carbonic acid is 
interrupted — during daylight carbon was retained and oxygen 



FIXATION OF CARBON IN PLANTS. 197 

given off (it will be remembered that carbonic acid consists 
of carbon and oxygen), but when darkness takes the place of 
light, then the carbonic acid is not decomposed, but escapes 
every moment through the leaves, and as soon as daylight is 
again ushered in, the decomposition commences and the car- 
bon is retained and fixed by the influence of light — similarly, 
perhaps, in many respects as the shadow is fixed on the sensi- 
tive plate in the daguerrean's hands — while the oxygen is 
excreted. 

Another argument presented by the theorists who hold that 
plants obtain all their carbon from the atmosphere through 
the leaves, is the well-known experiment of a plant having 
been grown in a tub filled with soil, and at the end of a cer- 
tain time the plant grew to be a tree weighing considerably 
more than the entire soil did at the commencement of the 
experiment, while the soil itself appeared to have diminished 
in weight a few pounds only. Now this experiment fails to 
prove that for which it was instituted. The plant was not 
watered with distilled, but with spring or brook water, neither 
was the soil so inclosed as to exclude dust, insects, and 
excrements from birds, etc., from accumulating on it. The 
plant received from rain and by artificial watering, all the 
alkalies which were not in the soil, or which had been exhaust- 
ed, as well as the necessary amount of carbonic acid. Sea water 
contains less than one ten-thousandth part of its weight of 
carbonate of lime, and the phosphate of lime in sea water is 
so small that its amount can not be determined in a pound of 
the water, yet this exceedingly minute quantity, seems to be 
an ample store, and furnishes the material for the habitations 
of the myriads of marine mollusca and corals, and for all those 
phosphates found in the flesh and bones of all the living ani- 
mals of the ocean. It is almost superfluous to repeat here 
that the water of brooks and springs, as well as well water, 
contains many alkalies as well as carbonic acid in solution ; 
and that the roots of the plants are constantly engaged in 



198 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

absorbing them. Hence the carbon as well as alkalies, of 
which the tree in question was composed, were conveyed to 
the roots in solution in water, and the experiment affords no 
proof whatever that the carbon was inhaled through the 
leaves 

On a previous page it was mentioned that the pungent smell 
in stables, in which horses and cattle were kept, was entirely 
due to ammonia. If the places where the urine and manure 
drop from the animal in the stable be occasionally sprinkled 
with plaster of Paris the offensive smell will vanish, while 
none of the ammonia will be lost, but will be condensed by 
the plaster of Paris. The ammonia in stables is always found 
in combination with carbonic acid; — the ammonia enters at 
once into combination with the sulphuric acid contained in 
the gypsum, or plaster of Paris, forming sulphate of ammonia, 
which is identical in composition with a substance which oc- 
curs native, and is known as mascagninc, and which is an 
efflorescence upon recent lavas — its composition being sulphu- 
ric acid 53.28, ammonia 22.81, water 23.91. The carbonic acid 
of the ammonia combines with the lime and forms a carbonate 
of lime. These newly formed compounds are entirely desti- 
tute of volatility and consequently of smell. 

Every clay that turns red when burned contains ferruginous 
or iron oxides ; the ammonia absorbed by clays of this char- 
acter, is separated by every shower of rain, and conveyed in 
solution to the soil, in which form it is imbibed by the roots 
of the plants. When ammonia in the form of salts as mas- 
cagnine above described, or other salts, is applied to the soil 
not the least portion of it is lost to plants, because it is soluble 
in water, and hence readily imbibed and assimilated. Mulder, 
however, conjectures that ammonia passes into plants in com- 
bination with organic acids. 

It has long been suspected that ammonia yielded nitrogen 
to plants, but since ammonia has been found to exist in every 
portion of the plant, this view has become somewhat modified. 



COMPOSITION OF GLUTEN. 199 

It exists in beet roots, in the sap of the maple tree, * and in 
all blossoms and fruit in an unripe condition. 

On a preceding page a statement has been made of variable 
quantities of gluten found in different varieties of wheat, as 
well as in the same varieties grown under different circum- 
stances. Gluten is found by analysis to consist of — 

Carbon 53.27. 

Hydrogen 7.13. 

Nitrogen 16.04. 

Sulphur 23.62. 
Proust found wheat to contain 12.5 per cent, of gluten ; 
Vogel found Bavarian wheat to contain 24 per cent.; Davy 
obtained 19 per cent, from winter and 24 per cent, from sum- 
mer wheat. He found that wheat from Barbary contained 19 
per cent., and that from Sicily 21 per cent, of gluten. Bous- 
singault found that wheat grown in Alsace contains 17.3 per 
cent.; that in the " Jardin dcs Plantes" 26.7, while the stand- 
ard winter wheat contained 33 per cent, of gluten. It once 
was thought that the different proportions of gluten found in 
plants was entirely an inherent quality of the particular vari- 
ety of wheat, but more recent investigations and experiments 
seem to warrant the conclusion that it is due to the different 
methods of cultivation and soils, rather than being an inherent 
quality in varieties ; although, perhaps, each of the causes 
enumerated, contribute toward producing such a result. It is 

* In the year 1834, I was engaged with Dr. Wilbrand, Professor of 
Botany in the University of Giessen, in an investigation respecting the 
quantity of sugar contained in different varieties of maple trees, growing 
upon uninanured soils. We obtained crystalized sugars from all, by 
simply evaporating their juices, without the aclditiou of any foreign 
substance; and we unexpectedly made the observation, that a great 
quantity of ammonia was emitted from this juice when mixed with 
lime, in the process of refining, as practiced with cane sugar. The ves- 
sels which hung upon the trees in order to collect the juice were watched 
.with the greatest attention, on account of the suspicion that some evil 
disposed persons had introduced urine into them, but still a large quan- 
tity of ammonia was again found in the form of neutral salts. — IAebig. 



200 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

a well known fact in agricultural chemistry, that animal man- 
ure not only increases the number of seeds, but produces a 
most remarkable difference in the proportion of nitrogenous 
substances, one of which is gluten. 

Liebig gives an account where " One hundred parts of 
wheat grown on a soil manured with cow dung (a manure 
containing the smallest quantity of nitrogen), afforded only 
11.95 parts of gluten, and 62.3-4 parts of amylin, or starch; 
while the same quantity grown on a soil manured with human 
urine, yielded the maximum of gluten, namely 35.1 per cent., 
or nearly three times the usual quantity. The conclusion is, 
that it is an ammonia which yields nitrogen to the vegetable 
albumen, which is the principal azotized constituent of plants. 
The vast importance of nitrogen may be inferred from this 
fact, namely, we may furnish a plant with carbonic acid, with 
humus ; in short, with all the necessary elements, but if ni- 
trogen is withheld, it will not attain complete development; 
an herb will be produced, it is true, but it will not produce 
any flowers, but even if it does produce flowers it will not 
produce seeds, and although starch and even sugar may be 
produced, it will be found that gluten is entirely absent. 

Notwithstanding the importance assigned to nitrogen in 
agricultural chemistry, there are occasional indications observ- 
able among leading authorities of dissatisfaction with the ni- 
trogenous theory, that is, the universally received views of the 
part borne by nitrogen in the economy of plants derived from 
observation of the indisputable use and necessity of ammonia 
in vegetable nutrition. Hence it seems to be assumed that 
nitrogen is the one indispensable element of ammoniacal 
manures on which their intrinsic value depends; and to such 
an extent has this idea occupied the ground of scientific dis- 
cussion, that the terms ammoniacal manures and nitrogenous 
manures are almost used as convertible terms. But these views 
are found to be attended with certain awkward and intracta- 
ble anomalies, and the facte of nature refuse to accommodate' 
themselves to the preconceived opinions of men. One of the 



WIIAT DOES NITROGEN PERFORM? 201 

eminent agricultural authorities expressed on one occasion 
the conclusion his observation led him to in these words : 
" Wheat is a great waster of ammonia." The proposition, no 
doubt, was a consistent and legitimate consequence of his 
views as an advocate of the nitrogenous theory ; for it ex- 
pressed the only conclusion he could draw from the fact, that 
the wheat refused to account for all the nitrogen it had some- 
how made away with ; but it sounded strangely impugnatory, 
as if Nature, which does nothing in vain, had constituted 
wheat, or any other plant, with a strong avidity for ammonia, 
for the useless purpose of wasting it or of taking it in, only 
to decompose and give out again. More lately Mr. Lawes and 
his coadjutors in the same field of agricultural science have 
come forward, and by a precise and philosophical deduction 
from carefully conducted experiments, have helped to confirm 
and extend the anomalous and inexplicable circumstances 
connected with the nitrogenous theory ; for they tell us, as 
the result of their experiments, that while some plants failed 
to account for more than a small portion of the nitrogen that 
had been consumed, or otherwise disposed of, there were 
others which returned (in their composition, I presume) more 
nitrogen than had been supplied to them. Facts like these 
can not be otherwise than perplexing and inexplicable on the 
prevailing views of the part borne by nitrogen in vegetable 
economy ; but they are quite in accordance with, and might 
be legitimately deduced from opinions expressed on the use 
and purposes of ammonia in vegetable economy, the purport 
of which was to prove that the appetence or avidity for am- 
monia, characteristic of vegetable life, is due, not to the nitro- 
gen so much, as to the hydrogen of the ammonia, which all 
plants require to form, in conjunction with carbon, the sub- 
stance of their physical structure ; in other words, to form 
vegetable fiber, or hydro-carbonaceous matter, which is the 
basis of every part of the vegetable structure, root, stem, 
leaves, flower, fruit, seeds, and their envelopes of every form 
or variety; while nitrogen is only a variable and partial ele- 



202 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



rnent in plants, not entering at all into the chemical composi- 
tion of vegetable fiber, and scarcely found in some vegetable 
substances, and more abundant in others ; dependent entirely 
on the idiosyncrasy, so to speak, or physical peculiarities of 
each class or kind of plants, as bestowed on them by Nature 
for special purposes. Hence the requirements of plants for 
nitrogen will be as various as their physical peculiarities, and 
will be indicated and measured by the amount of nitrogen 
found in the composition of their substance and products, 
while all will exhibit pretty nearly an equal avidity or capacity 
for ammonia; and hence this discrepancy between the uni- 
versal capacity of plants for ammonia, and their partial, and, 
generally speaking, very limited requirements of nitrogen, 
the first showing that there is something in ammonia they can 
not do without, and the other that that something is not ni- 
trogen. 

It appears to me that nothing more is necessary to arrive 
at a satisfactory solution, and at just views of the primary use 
and purpose of ammonia in vegetable economy, than to com- 
pare the chemical constituents of plants with the acknowl- 
edged sources or materials of vegetable aliment. These, with 
phosphorous and mineral substances, are water, carbonic acid, 
and ammonia, and humic acid, containing the four elements 
of the two latter substances. The following are a few of the 
most common and abundant substances in plants, with the 
proportions in which the elements of carbonic acid and am- 
monia are found in them i 





Oxygen. 


Carbon. 


Hydrogen. 


Nitrogen. 


Lignin, 
Starch . 


or vegetable fiber 


42.25 

49.68 
50.84 
50.63 
5.48 
25.13 


52.00 
43.55 
42.23 
42.57 
82.19 
53.40 


5.75 
C.77 
6.93 
6.90 
12.33 
6.80 


00.00 




00.00 




00.00 




00.00 


Wax 


00.00 


Gluten 




14.67 



NECESSITY OP AMMONIA. 208 

The first conclusion to be drawn from the above is, that 
plants require no nitrogen for the formation of vegetable 
fiber, the substance or basis of their common structure. This 
then is a very extensive reason, embracing by far the largest 
portion of vegetable matter, why plants, generally speaking, 
must fail to return or account for the nitrogen which has dis- 
appeared iff their consumption of ammonia, and it is irrespec- 
tive of a large and abounding class of vegetable products, as 
starch, gum, sugar, wax, oils, etc., which have not a particle 
of nitrogen in their composition, and therefore do not require 
it for their production. The next conclusion is suggested by 
the regular occurrence in certain proportions of hydrogen in 
all vegetable substances, not excluding gluten itself, the chief 
storehouse of nitrogen in the vegetable world ; and it seems 
to point out very clearly what use is primarily made of am- 
monia by plants. When an eminent agriculturist made the 
observation before adverted to, that wheat is a great waster of 
ammonia, was there really any waste of it? A great deal of 
nitrogen had certainly disappeared, but had the hydro-carbo- 
naceous matter of the entire plant contained in the vegetable 
fiber, the starch and gluten itself been estimated, instead of 
the partial amount of nitrogen in the latter substance, it must 
have been apparent that the wheat had made a very good 
use of the ammonia, though in a different direction from what 
his mind had been contemplating. 

There is a somewhat remarkable circumstance connected 
with the chemical constitution of vegetable substances, which 
deserves the attention of those who consider the production 
of vegetable fiber, sugar, etc., as a chemical combination of 
carbon and water ; from the circumstance of oxygen and hy- 
drogen existing in those substances, in the same, or nearly 
the same proportions as in water. This view may be dis- 
proved by other arguments ; but the point to which I now 
advert is, that a more steady and intimate relation subsists 
between the proportions of carbon and hydrogen, than be- 
tween those of any other two constituents of vegetable sub- 



204 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

stances. This will be seen by referring to the above list, and 
is more particularly exemplified in the case of wax, oils, resin, 
etc., in which, while the proportion of carbon rises to nearly 
double of what it is in sugar, starch and gum, the hydrogen 
rises along with it in nearly the same proportion, and an 
equivalent amount of oxygen is displaced. Again, in gluten 
it will be seen that while the carbon and hydrogen exist in 
proportions not materially different from what they do in 
vegetable fiber, the nitrogen is interposed at the expense of 
the oxygen. Now, setting aside the consideration that we 
have no proof that plants chemically decompose water, and 
that they appear merely to absorb it in its natural state, as 
the solvent and vehicle of those alimentary particles from 
which their substance and products are formed, should we not 
expect if vegetable fiber, sugar, etc., be really produced from 
a chemical combination of water and carbon, that there 
should be as close and constant a relation between the propor- 
tions of oxygen and hydrogen in all other substances of vege- 
table origin, as in these? Should not the type of relationship 
in vegetable substances be hydro-oxygenous rather than 
hydro-carbonaceous, as we see that it is. Or, to avoid this 
difficulty, must we resort to the still more untenable position, 
that though vegetable fiber, sugar, etc., are formed by a 
chemical combination of carbon and water, other vegetable 
substances are formed in some other way ? The hydro-car- 
bonaceous relation, for such it really is, which is characteristic 
of substances having a vegetable origin, when taken in con- 
nection with the admitted requirements of plants for carbonic 
acid and ammonia, presents a much more natural and satisfac- 
tory explanation of the sources and manner of their produc- 
tion, in agreement with their chemical constitution, and with 
known facts in vegetable physiology. In the two substances 
just mentioned we have the four elements, which enter into 
the composition of vegetable substances. Two of them, car- 
bon and hydrogen, are universally necessary, and are found 
combined in proportions varying from eleven to twenty parts 



CARBONIC ACID AND AMMONIA. 205 

of hydrogen to one hundred of carbon in different substances. 
Of the other two, oxygen appears to be universally present in 
vegetable subsiances, but in strongly unequal qualities, vary- 
ing from nearly twelve parts of oxygen to ten of carbon in 
sugar, down to one part of oxygen to fourteen of carbon in 
wax. Nitrogen, though stored up in considerable quantities 
in particular parts of various plants, forms a component part 
of comparatively few vegetable substances, the chief being 
gluten, and something very nearly the same, frequently termed 
in chemical analysis as vegeto-animal matter: in gluten, nitro- 
gen stands in the proportion of about twenty-seven parts to 
one hundred of carbon. If one might draw a distinction be- 
tween the relative places and functions of these constituent 
elements, the two former, carbon and hydrogen, might be re- 
garded as the fundamental or constructive elements of vegeta- 
ble matter, and the two latter, oxygen and nitrogen, as their 
modifying elements ; the diversified qualities of vegetable 
substances appearing mostly to depend on the extensively va- 
rying proportions in which these two elements enter into their 
composition, and little on variations in the proportions of car- 
bon and hydrogen, which, as we have seen, are limited to a 
very small range. When carbonic acid and ammonia are pre- 
sented to plants in conjunction with water, and the presence 
in the soil of mineral and other substances suited to their 
nature- and requirements, the latter are in a condition to de- 
compose them, and by a new arrangement of their component 
elements, to convert them into the materials of their own sub- 
stance and structure, and of the various products, which an 
all-wise and beneficent Creator has conferred on them the 
power of elaborating. But they can only do this by combin- 
ing these elements in certain definite proportions; and both 
carbonic acid and ammonia contain more oxygen and nitrogen 
than the requirements of plants, generally speaking, render need- 
ful ; consequently, while they make use of the entire carbon 
and hydrogen which these substances contain, there is much 
of the oxygen of the carbonic acid and of the nitrogen of the 



206 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ammonia which they can not usefully appropriate : they, there- 
fore, reject or give out the excess of these elements, which mix 
with and form component parts of the atmosphere. This is 
consistent with what has long been known respecting plants 
giving out oxygen ; and the experiments and researches of M. 
Ville, establish the fact that plants also respire or give out 
nitrogen. 

Gluten, or vegeto-animal matter, represents the most com- 
mon form or combination in which nitrogen occurs in plants ; 
and it exists in them in very variable quantities and in partial 
states ; perhaps entirely wanting in some, in others a mere trace 
of it, and in others again more or less abundant : not generally 
found diffused through every part of a plant, but concentrated 
or stored up in some particular parts or products, as in the 
seeds of wheat, peas, beans, lentils, acorns, chesnuts, etc., in 
various fruits, and sometimes in the leaves of plants, as cab- 
bage, cress, etc. ; and it mostly occurs in those plants and their 
products which constitute the food of man and animals, show- 
ing its obvious use and intention. From the partial existence 
then of nitrogen in plants and vegetable products, and, speaking 
generally, the very limited capacity they have of appropriating 
it, it is only to be expected that plants should ordinarily fail 
to return the amount of nitrogen supplied to them either 
through the medium of ammonia or in any other form ; at the 
same time, this is not inconsistent with the supposition, that 
there are plants exceptionally endowed with an unusual capa- 
city for appropriating nitrogen ; and in these cases a greater 
amount of it may be retained in their composition than can 
be readily accounted for by special experiments, as seems to 
have been the result in Mr. Lawes' investigations. 

The subject is one, not of merely speculative interest, but 
of practical importance. I believe considerable sums of money 
have at times been expended and thrown away from erroneous 
views of the primary use of ammonia in vegetable economy, 
proceeding on the supposition that nitrogen is the only or 
special element in it that renders it useful to plants ; hence 



NITROGEN IX THE WHEAT PLANT. 207 

nitrate of soda, and perhaps other merely nitrogenous sub- 
stances, have been often applied in agriculture at considerable 
expense, where at best they must have been useless, if not 
hurtful. 

The following summary of results of examinations of win- 
ter wheat are condensed from " Jahrbuch der Akademie zu 
Tharand," by a A. Stockhardt, and exhibits clearly the part 
played by nitrogen : 

1. Hoots. 

The watery contents decrease continually, during the devel- 
opment of the plant, being smallest in quantity at the time 
of flowering. 

The nitrogenous contents increase at first, then decrease, but 
with considerable fluctuations, and are greatest about the time 
of the formation of the head (2.6 per cent.), and smallest at 
the time of ripening (1.15 per cent.) 

The ashy contents increase until flowering, and decrease 
thenceforth until harvest-time ; they are greatest at the time 
of flowering (16.4 per cent.), smaller at the time of ripening 
(11.02 per cent.) 

2. Stalks. 

The watery contents decrease continually, and are smallest 
in quantity about the time of flowering. 

The nitrogenous contents increases at first, but from the 
time of flowering, when they have attained their maximum (3.1 
per cent.), they decrease regularly until harvest, at which 
time they amount to 1.15 per cent. 

The ashy contents correspond with the nitrogen in varia- 
tion, being greatest at the time of heading (7.5 per cent.), and 
least at maturity (3.7 per cent). 

3. Heads. 

The watery contents decrease continually, most slowly at 
the time of flowering, most rapidly in the latter periods of 



208 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

vegetation, and much more rapidly in the chaff (empty heads), 
than in the grains. 

The nitrogenous contents diminish continually until after 
flowering, and are consequently greatest in the young heads 
still inclosed in the involucre (3.5 per cent). This diminu- 
tion continues in the chaff after flowering (1.6 per cent), but 
on the contrary the grains become somewhat richer in nitre - 
gen until maturity (2.4 per cent). 

The ashy contents increase somewhat regularly until after 
flowering (6.4 per cent). This increase continues in the chaff 
until harvest (9.4 per cent.), while a very considerable decrease 
occurs in the grains (1.9 per cent). 

4. The Different Parts of the Plant collectively. 

Every part of the plant shows at the beginning of the pro- 
cess of heading out, its maximum of nitrogen ; the stalks con- 
taining the most, the ears less, and the roots the least. About 
the time Of maturity, the different parts follow each other in 
regard to their content of nitrogen, thus : grains, chaff, stalk, 
root, the latter two being nearly equal. 

The best refutation which I have seen of the theory that 
plants derive not only their carbonic acid, but their nitrogen, 
from the atmosphere, is the following, which is taken from 
an Essay on Agricultural Chemistry, published in the Journal 
of the Royal Agricultural Society, written by Liebig, in 1856, 
in defense of his views as misinterpreted by Messrs. Gilbert 
and Lawes, of England. 

" Experience demonstrates that the produce of two fields in 
the same district are very unequal. One meadow yields twice, 
thrice, four times as much hay as another meadow of equal 
surface, under the same external circumstances. An acre of 
clover in one field yields twice, thrice, or four times as much 
clover as an acre of another clover field. There are fields, 
nay, entire districts, on which clover does not grow or grows 
but poorly. What is the cause of this unequal fertility? The 
surface of the fertile, and that of the unfruitful field, are in 



NITROGEN NOT SUPPLIED FROM AIR. 209 

contact with a precisely equal volume of air ; to both, there- 
fore are presented by the air and by the rain, precisely equal 
quantities of carbonic acid and ammonia; it is therefore plain 
that the cause of the difference of produce must be sought 
for, not in the atmosphere, but in the soil ; this cause must 
be the inequality of the soil, while the external conditions are 
the same. 

In the fertile soil, twice, thrice, or four times as much of 
the terrestrial elements of nutrition have entered into the 
plants, than in the unfruitful one. There have, therefore, 
been more of these terrestrial constituents present, either 
absolutely or as regards their capacity of assimilation (their 
power of entering into the plant, from their existing in avail- 
able chemical forms) in the one soil than in the other. The 
amount of produce in these cases is unquestionably propor- 
tional to the quantity of mineral elements of nutrition pres- 
ent in the soils, and not to the quantity of carbonic acid and 
ammonia, for the atmosphere has supplied to both an equal 
quantity of these materials ; but in the one soil the condi- 
tions of their conversion into organic compounds were effi- 
cient, or operative, or greater in quantity, during the same 
time than in the other. 
18 



210 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER IX. 

EXPERIMENTS OF THE DUKE OF SALM HORSTMARR ON THE 
GROWH OF PLANTS IN INORGANIC ARTIFICIAL SOILS. 

Much has been written on the function which inorganic 
matter has been supposed to perform in the growth of the 
plant ; — many chemists have endeavored by the analyses of the 
ashes of different parts of the plant to determine precisely the 
purpose and office of each compound. It occurred to the Duke 
of Salm Horstmarr of Brunswick (Europe), that a more correct 
method would be to compose a soil of inorganic elements, all 
of which should as far as possible be prepared in an artificial 
manner — then by omitting in consecutive experiments a single 
element in each experiment, it was presumed that a more cor- 
rect knowledge of the importance and special functions of 
each element would be obtained. 

The following which I have translated from the German, 
embodies his experiments and results on the nutrition of 
plants. " In order to ascertain the inorganic nutrition of 
plants, it becomes necessary to select a medium which should be 
entirely free from any admixture of other inorganic elements. 
For this reason the carbon which I selected was obtained from 
the purest crystallized sugar; and to avoid any admixture of 
inorganic substances, it was thoroughly heated in a platina 
vessel. The experiments of Gaertner suggested the idea to me 
that plants would grow well in carbon. Small tin cups with- 
out any aperture in the bottom and coated on the inner surface 
with beeswax were the vessels used in the following series of 
experiments. The plants were watered with distilled water ; 
the place in which the experiments were conducted was an' 
uninhabited chamber, facing to the south ; the plants were 



horstmarr's experiments with oats. 211 

placed on a fixture at the window, so as to enjoy the noon- 
day sun. 

Experiments with White Oats. 
The first experiment, the following composition and in the 
following proportions, viz. : 



The silicate of Potash 
was dissolved in 40 
grms.of water. 



Carbon (of sugar) 2£ ounces. 

Silicic acid 0.075 grras. 

Potash 0.03 " 

Nitrate of aramouia 0.05 " 

Nitrate of magnesia 0.03 M 

Carbonate of lime 0.5 " 

Carbonate of magnesia -0.05 " 

Phosphate cf lime 0.1 " 

Sulphate of lime 0.1 " 

In this composition the plant attained a hight of 25 inches, 
had five flowers which produced five imperfect fruit, incapable 
of germination. The blossoms were very delicate ; the leaves 
of a pale color — yellowish green. The plant when dried 
weighed 0.37 grammes. I will now proceed to give the 
results of the first twenty-nine experiments with white oats : 

Results. 

In all these experiments made with a carbonaceous inor- 
ganic soil or rather a soil composed of inorganic elements, 
entirely devoid of all nitrogenous substances or ingredients, 
it was found that the plant not only grew, but actually grew 
better than with the addition of nitrogenous ingredients — 
besides the plant weighed four times as much in the 
former as in the latter case. But the plant in both cases was 
a frail pigmy, whose regular formation was very remarkable. 

2. In that series of experiments in which no inorganic nor 
nitrogenous ingredients were added, a well-proportioned 
dwarf plant was the result ; but in the experiment where 
nitrogenous ingredients were added, and other inorganic ones 
withheld, the plant was not well proportioned, but had leaves 



212 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

of a very lively green, and were extraordinarily long ; a single 
flower (blossom) was produced. Both plants when dry had 
the same weight. 

3. In that series of experiments wherein certain inorganic 
ingredients were added, combined with nitrogenous ones, the 
plants were very thrifty. In an experiment with the same pro- 
portion of nitrogen, but an omission of the other inorganic in- 
gredients, the plant died in the first leaf. When any one of the 
inorganic ingredients mentioned in the experiments which pro- 
duced thrifty plants were omitted, then the plants died in an 
early stage of development; or if they lived beyond it, were 
very feeble, pale in color and their entire formation abnormal. 

4. When a greater proportion of certain inorganic ingredi- 
ents were added to the carbon of sugar, or coal dust of sugar, 
without reducing the amount of nitrogen mentioned above, 
the result was a powerful assimilation and increase of blos- 
soms. From these experiments we were led to conclude that 
inorganic ingredients in combination with nitrogenous ones, 
must exist in the soil to produce normal and powerful plants, 
and that certain inorganic elements are essential to the plant 
as nutriment. 

5. If we combine with the enumerated inorganic ingredi- 
ents silicic, phosphoric and sulphuric acid, and potash, lime 
and magnesia only (together with the nitrogenous salt), 
we find that the plant grows more rapidly than without them, 
but it remains very pale, feeble and abnormal. 

6. But if we combine with this mixture a very small quan- 
tity of oxide of iron, then we find its effect upon the plant to 
be very surprising indeed — the plant now assumes a normal 
dark-green color, the leaves are of a luxuriant growth and 
proportionate strength; the whole plant has a healthy stiff- 
ness and robustness, and its weight is more than double that 
of one grown without the iron. Upon the whole the plant 
was abnormal ; traces of dry spots were very manifest in the 
center of the leaves ; the stalk and capsule gave indications 
of abnormal condition. An excessive proportion of iron 



SALM IIORSTMARR's EXPERIMENTS. 213 

increased the desiccated spots in the leaves, and prevented 
the formation of flowers. 

7. When a small proportion of carbureted oxide of man- 
ganese was added to the above named composition, a powerful 
plant was grown, which exhibited no signs of desiccation on 
the dark green leaves, but had a normally developed stem and 
powerful joints. Manganese appears to increase the assimila- 
tion of the plant; at all events the plant grown with manga- 
nese and iron weighed considerable more than without. But 
manganese produces an abnormity in the structure in the 
sheath of the last leaf, inasmuch as the latter appears to have 
turned on its axis, so as to render the breaking through, or 
expansion of, and the full development of the panicle diffi- 
cult. In the stools or side shoots this abnormal condition was 
not manifest ; hence the inference that it is caused by the 
quantity of manganese. 

8. These experiments do not decide that soda is an essential 
ingredient, although its presence appeared beneficial, more 
especially when there is an excess of manganese, inasmuch as 
it removes the abnormity caused by the manganese in the 
sheath of the last leaf. But if there is no potash in the mix- 
ture, then the opposite result takes place, inasmuch as the 
soda not only strengthens the turning of the last leaf sheath, 
but makes the leaf itself appear wound or twisted. 

9. Up to a certain point, soda appears to neutralize the pot- 
ash, although uniformly at the expense of the plant. 

10. Magnesia can not neutralize lime. 

11. When phosphoric acid was omitted in the mixture, but 
silicic and sulphuric acid, potash, lime and magnesia retained, 
it was found that # nitrogenous salts were much more effective, 
than when sulphuric acid was omitted and phosphoric added 
to the mixture. But in both these cases, although the plant 
was well proportioned, yet it was exceedingly weak. The one 
which was grown without phosphoric acid, by some extraor- 
dinary freak produced a perfect seed ; on the contrary, the one 
which was grown with phosphoric acid, but the sulphuric 



214 TIIE WHEAT PLANT. 

omitted, produced no fruit, although this acid enters very 
minutely into the composition of the plant or fruit. This to 
me indicates the importance of both these acids in relation to 
the assimilation of the nutrition of the plant. The import- 
ance of the sulphuric and phosphoric acids are more manifest 
when we compare the weights of the plants produced in these 
several experiments. The weight of the plant is found to be 
four times greater when both are present than when either is 
omitted. 

12. When silicic acid was omitted, the plant did not stand 
erect, but reclined; it was a very smooth, pale, well propor- 
tioned dwarf. 

When lime was omitted, the plant died in the second leaf. 
Without soda or potash, it attained the length of three inches. 

Omitting magnesia, the plant remains feeble and couchant. 

The plant was very weak and tender, although erect and 
normally formed when phosphoric acid was omitted. 

It was weaker, although erect and well proportioned, but 
without fruit, when the sulphuric acid was omitted. 

Without iron, the plant is pale, feeble and abnormal. 

It will not attain its full strength, neither will it bloom pro- 
fusely, without manganese. From these experiments with the 
carbon of sugar, it appears that: silicic acid, phosphoric acid, 
sulphuric acid, potash, lime, magnesia, iron, and manganese, 
are the ash -producing ingredients essentially necessary to pro- 
duce the oat plant. 

13. These experiments do not determine whether chlorine 
is, or is not essentially necessary in the production of this 
plant ; although the carbonate of sugar was washed and the 
inorganic ingredients free from chlorine (except in the case 
of the experiment made with sal. ammoniac), yet in 
two cases in the water which was extracted from the plants 
grown in the sugar coal dust, there were decided traces of 
chlorine, although too small in quantity to be measured. This 
chlorine was not derived from that of the seed, for the rea- 
son that there is a still smaller quantity in the seed. The 



COMPARISON OP EXPERIMENTS 215 

distilled water with which the plant was watered was distilled 
rather rapidly. 

I will state in conclusion another experiment made with the 
coal dust of sugar, namely, an experiment which was con- 
ducted in a cast iron vessel, and therefore contained oxide of 
iron and manganese. The inorganic ingredients were the 
same as in the first experiment, with this exception — to the coal 
dust was added some soda and chloride of soda. This experi- 
ment showed what ingredients were wanting in the others; 
because in this the plant was not only very vigorous, deep 
green, but bore five perfect seed grains, which successfully 
withstood the germinative test. Soda as well as iron, there- 
fore, appear to be necessary in the formation of the oat fruit. 

Comparison of Experiments with White Oats, which 
were not grown in coal dust, with the foregoing 
Experiments : 

These experiments were suggested by Alexander von Hum- 
boldt. They were made in the purest brook sand heated to a 
glowing heat, and combined with artificial silicic acid, and 
finally with rock crystal, so as to approximate somewhat to the 
natural soil. The inorganic additions were the same as in the 
preceding experiments, and the experiments themselves were 
conducted in the same manner — always omitting one of the 
component ingredients in order to test its effect or necessity. 
And here I would remark that basic-phosphorous oxide of 
iron, nitrate of soda, chloride of sodium, and nitrate of pot- 
assium, were added in several special experiments. 

Cups made of filtered white wax, without any orifice in bot- 
tom or sides, were the vessels in which the experiments were 
made. 

The result of these experiments may in brief be stated as 
follows : 

1. In pure, well heated sand, without any inorganic or ni- 
trogenous additions, the oat plant grew with normal structure 
and proportions, yet very small and tender. 



216 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

2. The number of fruits were reduced to a solitary one, 
although the sand was not entirely free from silicates and 
traces of phosphorous oxide of iron. In the absence of nitro- 
genous combinations, the assimilation of all atmospheric in- 
gredients is greatly retarded. 

3. With the addition of nitrogen — but without any other 
inorganic ingredient — to this sand, which contained traces of 
silicates, the plant grew higher, bore one blossom and one 
fruit more than in the preceding case, but the stalk lost the 
power to stand erect. The same experiment in every respect 
made in pure, natural quartz, instead of brook sand, produced 
a plant with scarcely any stalk, and no flowers — the assimila- 
tion being apparently entirely prevented. 

4. When nitrogen was omitted, but the following seven arti- 
cles combined, viz., silicic acid, potash, lime, magnesia, oxide 
of iron, phosphoric acid, and sulphuric acid, the plant remained 
very small and feeble, as in the first experiment, the flowering 
force much reduced, and the capacity for producing fruit ceased 
entirely ; but instead thereof there appeared to be a disposi- 
tion to produce another stalk by the side of the first. The 
result of vegetation in this case is therefore abnormal. As- 
similation goes on very slowly — is scarcely perceptible. 

5. When these seven inorganic ingredients were combined 
with a nitrogenous one, and administered as nutriment to the 
plant in a proper manner, then was the growth of the plant 
not only normal, but vigorous, and the flowers very much 
increased in quantity, but a normal termination of vegetation 
did not take place, notwithstanding a great propensity to grow 
side shoots. In this experiment it was found that assimilation 
went on very rapidly ; thus demonstrating that the conditions 
of its success have been discovered. 

6. When any one of the above enumerated seven inorganic 
ingredients was omitted, although the nitrogen was combined 
with the remaining six, it was found that the proper develop- 
ment was disturbed in a greater or less degree, in the follow- 
ing manner: When lime was omitted, the plant died in the 



WHAT INORGANIC SUBSTANCES ARE ESSENTIAL. 217 

second leaf, without giving any indication of forming a stalk. 

Without magnesia, the stalk was not erect but couchant, 
feeble, color abnormal, the structure of the flowers changed, 
and the flowers deformed and without fruit. 

Without potash the stalk was very short, feeble, couchant, 
color abnormal ; flowers, reduced to a solitary one, and it very 
defective. 

Without soluble silicic acid and without potash, the growth 
of the stalk was reduced to three inches, color abnormal, the 
leaves dying prematurely, and no flowers. 

Without phosphoric acid, the stalk was very frail, couchant, 
color pale, flowers reduced to a solitary perfect one, no fruit, 
but a disposition to throw out side shoots. 

Without sulphuric acid, no stalk formation — the plant died 
in the third leaf; a shoot was thrown out, but shared the 
same fate. 

Without iron, the green color is wanting in a greater or 
less degree ; the plant appears as though it were grown in a 
dark place — no flowers are formed, or else are very much 
deformed, and very defective. (When aluminum was supplied 
the plant seemed to suffer the loss of iron in a less degree — 
the clay, however, may have contained traces of iron.) 

7. From this it appears that the above named seven inor- 
ganic substances are essentially necessary to the growth and 
development of the plant, even to the formation of the flowers, 
provided that the proper nitrogenous ingredients are present. 
These experiments do not, however, confirm the necessity of 
chlorine — in these experiments every accidental admixture 
with chlorine was carefully avoided by rinsing and cleansing ; 
while the plants were watered with double distilled water ; 
notwithstanding all this care, there were evident traces of 
chlorine in the plant, which could not possibly have proceeded 
from the seed, since there is not in a single seed sufficient 
chlorine to be detected. 

These seven inorganic substances failed to produce fruit. 
19 



218 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

8. Sodium does not appear to possess the properties neces- 
sary to neutralize the potassium. 

9. The greater portion of these results of experiments made 
in quartz and quartz sand, correspond very nearly with the 
results of experiments made with sugar coal. At the same 
time it must be remembered that the sand contained silicates, 
and contained very small proportions of phosphate of iron ; 
the sugar coals on the other hand, were not altogether free 
from traces of inorganic substances, as subsequent investiga- 
tions proved. 

The experiment with the sugar coals, omitting all inorganic 
substances other than nitrate of ammonia, proved to be very 
different from a similar experiment with quartz sand. It is 
very evident from the roots of the plant, that in the sugar coal 
experiment, entirely too much nitrate of ammonia was em- 
ployed. Experiments with both the above bases prove that 
the results are greatly influenced by the proportion of iron 
which enters into the composition. 

10. Manganese does not appear to be essentially necessary 
for the formation of fruit, especially when too much iron has 
not been employed. The question of the essentiality of man- 
ganese was exceedingly diflicult to be decided in the sugar 
coal experiment, while the more powerfully absorbing qualities 
of iron in moist coal dust, render the proper determination of the 
relative proportions yet more intricate ; thus in all the coal 
dust experiments, manganese appeared to be essentially 
necessary on account of the presence of the iron. (For 
the same reason is manganese necessary in a soil which has a 
comparatively large per centage of iron. In some soils it is 
found not unfrequently amounting to fully one per cent.) 

11. When iron is in excess, the growth of the stalk is ab- 
normal, the leaves become dried with brown spots (iron spots) 
in various places (corresponding with the experiments in coal 
dust, with this difference, that in the latter experiment the 
color of the spots was varied). The flowers are imperfect and 



INORGANIC ELEMENTS IN PLANTS. 219 

dwarfed, and the fruit undeveloped. That iron is an essen- 
tial ingredient in the soil, and that the plant requires an ex- 
ceedingly small proportion of it, is manifest from the analysis 
of the ashes of a vigorous, normal and fruitbearing plant, pro- 
duced in brook sand, which had been heated to a red heat, 
then digested in muriatic acid, and the necessary inorganic 
ingredients added afterward, with the exception of iron, a 
sufficient quantity of which was in the sand. 

12. Phosphate of iron is found to be an excellent source of 
iron for the plant. When brook sand is employed oxyhydrate 
of iron may be added ; the quartz will soon be found to be 
tinged with a greenish cast, caused by microscopic algae, which 
announce the operation of the oxyhydrate. 

13. Fluate of lime dwarfs the growth of the plant, and pre- 
vents flowering, even when added in very small quantities. 

14. But when the above named seven inorganic ingredients 
were combined with the nitrogenous ingredients and added to 
the quartz, it did not produce a normal growth of fruit. It 
was in the test experiment only, with heated brook sand di- 
gested in muriatic acid that proved an exception to the gene- 
ral rule, and proves also that the failure of the former to pro- 
duce fruit, is by no means attributable to the season, for the 
reason that both experiments were conducted at the same 
time. This test experiment proves also, that the seven ingre- 
dients, together with the nitrogenous elements in this case did 
produce fruit — they should, therefore, have produced the same 
result in the quartz, but as they failed to accomplished it in 
the latter case, we must conclude that the brook sand con- 
tained an inorganic substance essentially necessary for the 
formation and development of fruit which was not contained 
in any of the added ingredients. 

15. Alumina appears to be such a fruit-forming and devel- 
oping ingredient as above mentioned ; at least several experi- 
ments indicate such results. The experiment with hydrate of 
alumina produced two germinating seeds ; that with artificial 
silicate of potassium and alumina produced two seeds having 



220 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

terminating properties; so also resulted the experiment with 
feldspar from Baveno. The experiment with scolecit from 
Iceland — composed of silicic acid, lime, alumina, and water, 
soluble in a dilute acid — containing no trace of sodium, pro- 
duced no fruit, which impairs the stress laid on the importance 
of silicate of alumina. 

16. The experiment, with three decigram, clay from Alnie- 
rode (slightly heated) which, although it produced five ger- 
minating seeds, appears to have contained other and essen- 
tially necessary ingredients for the growth and development 
of the fruits, as the clay contained only about six centi- 
grammes of alumina, and was not certainly any more soluble 
after being heated than was the hydrate of alumina in one of 
the former experiments, which produced fewer perfect fruits. 
The washed clay from Almerode contains, according to Forch- 
hammer, aside from silicate of alumina, about 13 per cent, 
of potassium, manganese, iron, and traces of chalk, and un- 
doubtedly traces of sodium. In 0.3 grm. of washed clay of 
Almerode, I found 0.0047 potassium and 0.0013 of sodium, 
therefore I am led to conclude that the sodium is the import- 
ant agent. 

17. The side-shoots or suckers merit special attention, as 
they appear to have an important relation to the formation 
and development of fruit. Whenever side-shoots made their 
appearance, it was invariably found to be after the vegetating 
period, as well as after the appearance of the fruit. They 
originate always either immediately before, or co-incident with 
the sterile flowers in all these experiments. 

In the experiment with hydrate of alumina, as well as in 
the one with silicate of potassium and alumina, also in the 
one with the feldspar from Baveno, in each of which experi- 
ments two germinating fruits were produced, the side-shoots 
made their appearance after the plants were in bloom ; and in 
the experiment which produced five perfect fruits, they attained 
a respectable size. On the other hand, in the experiment with 
three decigram, of clay from Almerode. which produced five 



SUMMARY OF EXPERIMENTS. 221 

perfect fruits, and singular as it may appear, two small pro- 
jections made their appearance as side-shoots after the fruit 
had fully ripened. But finally it must be observed that in all 
test experiments in brook sand, which produced six, eight, or 
nine perfect fruits, there were no traces of side-shoots. Now, 
if we take into account the proportion of flowers to the per- 
fect fruits, in connection with the number of side-shoots, as 
follows : 

Experiment. Flowers. Fruits. Side-shoots. 

1. Hydrate of alumina 7 2 2 

2. Clay of Almerode 8 5 2 smallest. 

3. Feldspath from Baveuo 4 2 2 

4. Artificial silicate of potassium and alumina, 6 2 2 

5. Test experiment in brook sand 9 8 

6. Same 8 8 

7. Brook sand digested in muriatic acid 11 9 

We find the proportion of Flowers in the 2nd case to be as 8 to 5 
ci u u u u Fruits « " 6th " " " " 8 to 6 

The proportion in these two experiments are so nearly 
equal as to be remarkable, and to excite some surprise that in 
the case of the brook sand all vegetation ceases with the 
ripening of the fruit, but in the experiment with the 3 deci- 
gram, of clay from Almerode, mixed with quartz, vegetation 
did not cease with the ripening of the fruit, but produced 
after the ripening period two small side-shoots. 

From this it would appear that the three decigrams of clay 
from Almerode, aside from the alumina 3 contained one or 
more inorganic substances which were essentially necessary to 
the formation of fruit, but not in sufficient proportion or 
abundance to produce a sufficient amount of fruit which 
should exhaust the normal vegetative power coincident with 
the ripening of the fruit. 

18. The experiment with the three decigrams of washed 
clay from Almerode, which was heated in the open air, is one 
of singular as well as peculiar importance. It furnishes us 



222 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

with the extreme proportion of inorganic substances contained 
in three decigrams of clay essentially necessary to perfect 
fruit — under these conditions. It is very clear that the ener- 
gy or force of the elements were not exhausted in forming 
and perfecting the five fruits, from the fact that sufficient veg- 
etative force and material yet remained to form two small 
side-shoots. If there had been a sufficient surplus of vitality 
or vegetative force, it would have found its way to, and have 
perfected the remaining two flowers ; by referring to experi- 
ment 7, it will be seen that sufficient of the other inorganic 
elements were present. 

19. A very singular phenomenon was exhibited in an ex- 
periment in well heated brook sand, which in addition to the 
usual addition of inorganic ingredients, contained chloride of 
potassium and carbonate of sodium. In this case the side 
shoots made their appearance at a peculiar period, namely, 
before the stalk which bore the fruit panicle was developed. 
This is precisely what takes place in practical agriculture when 
the oats are sowed on a rich and strong soil, and it is also 
found by experience that the fruit increases in proportion to 
these side-shoots. 

From this it is very evident that 0.005 grins, of chloride of 
potassium, and 0.001 of carbonate of sodium, either singly or 
combined, produced fruit and side-shoots, because a cotempo- 
raneous experiment was conducted in brook sand without 
these ingredients, in which the phenomenon of fruit and side- 
shoots did not take place. This experiment is important 
inasmuch as it serves to show that in either the chloride of 
potassium or carbonate of sodium the necessary elements for 
the formation and development of fruits are contained. But 
which of these two ingredients supplied the necessary mate- 
rial for fruits, future experiments must determine. It is 
remarkable, however, that when the experiment was conduct- 
ed in pulverized flint, even with the addition of the above 
named two ingredients, no fruit was produced. 

20. The appearance of side-shoots coincident with the 



THE DROP ON THE FIRST LEAF. 223 

flowering period, or after the maturity of the fruit, is indica- 
tive of a total or partial want of the proper ingredients to 
form fruits. If this exponent were not strictly observed, the 
1st and 2d experiments might serve to mislead rather than 
guide us correctly ; because in these experiments we might 
be inclined to ascribe the fruit formative elements to the 
alumina ; but upon a more minute examination it will be 
seen that the alumina is entirely inessential to this end. It is 
however, not only possible, but highly probable that a trace of 
sodium was contained in the alumina, or silicate of potassium 
and alumina, which alone was the cause of the formation of the 
fruit. No traces of sodium could be found in the ashes of 
the plants which were grown in alumina, from which all other 
elements had certainly been expelled. 

As an annual plant, the oat must cease vegetating the 
moment its fruit has ripened, and when we shall have discov- 
ered the exact proportion as well as the precise number and 
quality of the ingredients to produce this result, we shall have 
attained the object of these experiments. 

21. A small, clear drop or globule resembling dew was 
formed on the end of the first leaf, at the time of its first appear- 
ance, but as the leaf became more fully developed the glob- 
ule disappeared. It was found on the first leaf only. It 
made its appearance daily just after sunset, but during the 
night increased somewhat in size, but evaporated the next day, 
except when the air was moist and damp ; it then remained the 
entire day. It contained a large percentage of gum; in the 
experiments conducted in sugar coal dust, without the addi- 
tion of any inorganic ingredients other than 0.004 grm. of 
nitrate of ammonia, the globule was remarkably abundant 
in gum. This globule made its appearance on the end of the 
first leaf in every experiment. 

After the evaporation of the drop, a gummy substance as 
residuum may be seen at the extremity of the leaf during the 
day-time. That this phenomenon is independent of the soil 
in which the plant is grown, is certainly evident from the fact 



224 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

that it was observed on the plants grown in sand, as well as 
those grown in brook sand, in quartz, and in the sugar coal 
dust. The fruit which was obtained from an experiment 
made in sand with nitrate of ammonia, without any other 
inorganic substances, was planted in the same ingredients, and 
the first leaf again produced the globule, which remained 
longer during the day-time than the others. The entire phe- 
nomenon is sometimes completed in two days. 

22. A singular phenomenon occurred during an experi- 
ment to test the germinative properties of fruits grown in 
hydrate of alumina; there was an abnormal development of 
the first leaf, as it came forth from its sheath ; it retained, 
although fully an inch long, its tubular or cylindrical form 
without spreading at the end. This abnormality is indicative 
of a disturbance in the development of the roots, which did 
not occur in testing the vegetative properties of the five fruits 
grown in the Almerode clay. 

23. There were 0.02 grm. of nitrate of ammonia diluted 
in 15 grms. of distilled water, and added to a plant which 
had developed its first and second leaves in pulverized quartz, 
to which were added the usual inorganic ingredients. The 
result was the destruction of the plant, after becoming cov- 
ered with yellow spots. Whatever inorganic elements it is 
intended to furnish the plant from ammonia, must be intro- 
duced into the soil before germination commences, or else di- 
lute it in the proportion of .01 grm. of nitrate of ammonia to 
50 grms. of distilled water ; apply in sprinkling the com- 
pound, answering the place of soil, otherwise the organism, 
particularly in the development of the roots, becomes dis- 
turbed. 

24. Since the plant itself is the best analyst of the soil, and 
by its development testifies to the condition of the soil much 
more correctly than any artificial analysis by chemists possibly 
can determine, it certainly is desirable that practical agricul- 
turists adopt some method similar to this series of experiments, 
that is, take a number of water-tight vessels, fill them with 



EXPERIMENTS WITH SPRING BARLEY. 225 

soil from the same spot, then add a different inorganic ingre- 
dient to each vessel, plant seed therein and note the differences, 
and observe the effect of the ingredient added. 

25. Experiments in silica, prepared from silicate of potas- 
sium, thoroughly washed and heated to a white heat, has failed 
to produce a plant. Even with the addition of all the inor- 
ganic substances usually employed, it produced a very weak 
and dwarfish plant only. It appears that the fine laminae of 
the silica are entirely too light, the roots elevating them in 
every direction, while the roots themselves appear to be little 
else than elongated air bladders, which soon collapse and the 
plant dies. 

26. More recent experiments indicate that sodium is of 
essential importance in the formation of fruit in the oat plant. 

27. With regard to iron, it is necessary to remark that in 
the ashes of a plant grown in a basis containing phosphate of 
iron, there was no great difficulty in tracing iron in combina- 
tion with sulphuric acid in the ashes of the plant; but chem- 
ical analysis would never have indicated the essential part 
performed by iron in the formation and development of fruit, 
if the synthetic system had not been adopted. 

Experiments with Spring Barley. 

The experiments with this plant were conducted solely to 
determine the requisite inorganic ingredients to produce and 
develop fruit. They were conducted in waxen vessels, and in 
all other respects conducted as were the experiments with the 
oat plant. The composition of the artificial soil is here re- 
peated, so that the reader can see how it compares with the 
preceding ones : 

65.000 grms. well heated brook sand, fully oxydized, but 
not washed. 
0.1 grm. carbonate of lime. 
0.04 " tri-phosphate of lime. 
0.03 " sulphate of lime. 
0.02 " carbonate of magnesia. 



226 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

0.02 grm. nitrate of potassium "\ 

0.018 « silicic acid },. , A In 15 S rms - of dis " 
0.009 « potassium } dlSS0,VeC ' 5 tiUed WatCT ' 

The development of the plant was normal. The stalk was 
nineteen inches long, produced eight blossoms, each one of 
which produced a perfect, fruit, which possessed all the re- 
quisite germinative properties. This experiment served as 
a test. 

The composition of an artificial soil, in which sodium is en- 
tirely omitted, is here presented : 

65.000 grms. coarsely pulverized mountain crystal, (or 
quartz) carefully washed. 
0.50 grm. carbonate of lime. 
0.06 " triphosphate of lime. 
0.03 " sulphate of lime. 
0.05 " basic phosphate of iron, heated with mountain 

crystal. 
0.02 " nitrate of potassium dissolved in 15 grms. dis- 
tilled water. 
0.001 " carbonate of magnesia. 
The seed planted in this composition was obtained from a 
barley plant which was grown entirely without sodium, but 
most certainly in cleansed brook sand. The stalk was twelve 
inches long. The ear or spike, remained sheathed in the up- 
per leaf, was undeveloped ; bore neither blossom nor fruit. It 
must be remarked, however, that in the experiment which 
produced the seed emploj^ed in the above experiment, chloride 
of sodium was so intimately combined with the brook sand, as 
not to be entirely inseparable, even after the most thorough 
treatment. It would then "appear that the chloride of sodium 
in the preceding experiment served the purpose of forming 
and developing the fruit. Two more experiments with this 
plant appear to be worthy of notice : 

First. — Without sodium. The same composition with moun- 
tain crystal as in the preceding experiment. Stalk nine 
inches long, the ear or spike not visible, without flowers and 



EXPERIMENTS WITH WINTER WHEAT. 227 

without fruit. Although it was regularly watered, the plant 
gradually died. No side shoots. 

Second. — With sodium. The same inorganic composition 
as in the last experiment, with the addition of four miligrams 
of nitrate of sodium. Stalk sixteen inches long, normal, the 
entire ear visible, with long beards but without pollen sacs, 
without blossoms, and consequently fruitless. 

Results. 

From the fourteen experiments which were made with bar- 
ley, it appears that another ingredient aside from sodium, is 
necessary for fruit formation and development, which the 
plant found in brook sand, because in this latter it bore fruit 
— the essential ingredient was a chloride. Later experiments 
prove most incontestably that iron is absolutely necessary in 
the structure of the stalk. 

Experiments with Winter Wheat. 

In well-heated brook sand, but not washed, digested or tri- 
turated, but with the addition of the usual inorganic ingredi- 
ents, together with nitrate of potassium, fruit was produced. 

In carefully washed brook sand, which was afterward di- 
gested in boiling dilute sulphuric acid, to which the usual 
ingredients were added, but sodium and chlorine omitted, the 
stalk was weak and decrepid, and produced neither flowers 
nor fruit. 

In the same artificial soil, with sodium added, the stalk 
attained the length of twenty-one inches, produced thirty-four 
leaves, bore three flowers and two perfect fruits. 

No globule or dew-drop was found on the wheat plant, as 
was on the oats and barley, in the experiments with them. 
The experiments with the wheat plant indicate the necessity 
of sodium for the formation and development of fruit. 
Eighteen experiments were made in the wheat plant, all, how- 
ever, in brook sand, digested in sulphuric acid ; the most im- 
portant of these experiments are the following : 



228 the wheat plant. 

Experiment First — Without Soda and without 

Chlorine. 

65.000 gmis. crystallized quartz — the finest powder removed 
by washing.* 

0.02 grms. nitrate of potassium dissolved in fifteen grms. 
of distilled water. 

0.1 nitro-carbonate of lime. 

0.05 " tri-phosphate of lime. 

0.02 " sulphate of lime. 

0.02 " carbonate of magnesia. 

0.04 " basic phosphate of oxide of iron heated with the 
quartz. 

0.001 nitro-carbonate of the oxide of manganese. 

The plant died while in the sixth leaf, without any stem or 
flowers, thus showing the necessity of sodium. 

For the sake of brevity in the following experiments, the 
annexed names of six salts will be designated by that of "the 
usual salts," viz. : 

Nitrate of potash, carbonate of lime, phosphate of lime, 
sulphate of lime, carbonate of magnesia, carbonate of manga- 
nese. 

Experiment Second — with Nitrate op Sodium. 

One milligram of nitrate of sodium dissolved in fifteen 
grms. of distilled water " the usual salts," added when the 
plant was in the third leaf. The plant died, in the seventh 
leaf without stem. The last three leaves had the appearance 
of bristles rather than any thing else. The roots were ex- 
ceedingly delicate. 

3d Experiment, with five milligrams of nitrate of sodium, 
together with " the usual salts." The plant died without 

* The finest powder of the pulverized quartz was necessarily removed, 
in order to remove as far as possible all the chloride of potash and chlo- 
ride of soda, which is inherent in the crystallized quartz. These 
chlorides have invariably been found in German, French and American 
crystals. 



SODIUM, IRON AND MANGANESE NECESSARY. 229 

forming any stem, and the last leaves were again like bristles. 
The cause in this case may be attributed to the fact that the 
plant germinated in a compound destitute of sodium. 

4th Experiment, with same substances and the " usual 
salts," with the addition of one milligram of chloride of 
sodium. Plant died with out forming stalk — it had germinated 
in a compound destitute of sodium. 

The last three experiments do not indicate the necessity of 
the presence or absence of sodium, probably because they 
were made in an inverted manner ; yet these experiments pos- 
sess a scientific interest, as they seem to demonstrate the influ- 
ence which the sodium exerts upon the activity of the 
component parts of the germinating seed. 

5th Experiment, without nitrate of sodium, with chloride 
of sodium. The chloride of sodium was in this case added 
before germination took place, and from this cause, it is pre- 
sumed, that the stalk attained the hight of fourteen inches. 
It bore no perfect blossom, the flowering portion of the de- 
fective ear consists of two bearded chaff-like scales. The 
plant had fifteen leaves, was abnormal, but important. The 
" usual salts " were, of course, added. 

Gtli Experiment, omitting iron, but substituting five milli- 
grams of nitrate of sodium and one milligram of chloride of 
sodium, together with the " usual salts.'' The stalk was 
without an ear, delicate, sent out two suckers in the early part 
of its existence, but which produced no stalks. The com- 
pound was completed before the seeds were put in to germi- 
nate. The absence of iron is here readily discernible. 

7th Experiment, omitting iron and manganese. Five milli- 
grams of nitrate of sodium, and one milligram of chloride of 
sodium were in the compound, together with the "usual salts." 
The plant remained without stalk and without bloom. The 
leaves were of a lively green. The necessity of manganese 
for the growth of the stalk in this case, seems very manifest. 
The elongation of the first sprout consumed an extraordinary 
amount of time. 



230 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

8th Experiment, omitting iron, manganese, sodium, chlo- 
rine, but with the "usual salts." The plant produced seven 
green leaves, but produced neither stalk nor bloom. 

9th Experiment, with the addition of iron, manganese and 
the " usual salts," together with three milligrams of nitrate 
of sodium and one-half milligram of chloride of sodium. 
This plant exhibited extraordinary tardiness during the stalk 
formative period ; it remained absolutely in statu quo during 
six weeks, when there was added one-fifth of a milligram of 
sulphate of iron dissolved in fourteen grms. of water. In a 
remarkably short period of time the stalk "shot up" to the 
hight of nine inches ; but the plant died of defective water- 
ing. It was, however, manifest that no flowers were to be 

formed. 

Kesults. 

From the contradictory results in the foregoing experiments, 
it is very manifest that another ingredient is essential to this 
artificial soil in order to produce flowers ; and the disparity in 
these results can be fully understood and investigated when 
the undetermined ingredient shall have been discovered. Ox- 
ide of iron, oxide of manganese and chloride of lime appear 
to be essential, but yet not sufficient to produce the flowers. 

Experiment with Spring Wheat. 
The quartz in this experiment was digested in muriatic 
acid, because it appeared to be of a slightly ferruginous 
nature ; — it was afterward washed very carefully and dried. 
Omitting iron and chlorine. 

65.000 grins, quartz, 

0.035 Silicic acid > .. . c _ , , 
c\ m q t> * • i liquified by heat, 

0.018 Potassium J n J ' 

0.02 Nitrate of potash, 

0.005 Nitrate of sodium, 

0.002 Nitrate of ammonia, 

0.1 Carbonate of lime, 

0.05 Tri phosphate of lime, 

0.03 Sulphate of lime, 

0.02 Carbonate of magnesia. 



dissolved in 15 grs. distill- 
ed water. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH WHEAT AND RYE. 231 

The plant was normal and green, thirteen inches long, bore 
five flowers without anthers, and consequently without fruit. 
Notwithstanding the severe trituration and digestion of the 
quartz in muriatic acid it yet contained inclosed within its small 
particles, glimmerings of iron, hence this experiment is im- 
portant as serving to show that very little iron is sufiicient to 
produce the desired result. 

Experiment with Winter Rye. 

This plant conducted itself strangely, according as it was 
placed to enjoy the morning or noon -day sun only. 

There were several experiments made with fine brook sand, 
the other ingredients being the same. Two of the experi- 
ment vessels were so situated at a window as to enjoy the 
morning sun only ; while two others were placed at another 
window so as to enjoy the noon-day sun only. These plants 
all bloomed; those which enjoyed the noon-day sun produced 
fruit while those placed at the east window produced none. 
These experiments I have repeated several times, and always 
with the same results. The cause is not very manifest for this 
singular phenomenon, if it is not to be found in the fact of 
polarization of light by the glass in the window, and the 
additional fact that the chemical or actinic rays prevail to a 
much greater extent at noon than in the morning. 

In all these experiments with winter rye as well as with the 
winter wheat, no drop was apparent at the extreme point of 
the young leaflet, as there was in the oats and barley. 

The ingredients were nitrate of potassium, carbonate of 
lime, phosphate of lime, sulphate of lime, carbonate of mag- 
nesia, basic phosphate of oxide of iron, carbonate of manga- 
nese. This composition contained no sodium. In all the other 
experiments with mountain crystal, with the addition of 
nitrate of sodium, chloride of sodium, phosphate of oxide of 
iron, as well as when the oxide of iron and nitrate of sodium 
were omitted, and also when nitrate of sodium and chloride 
of sodium were mingled, I obtained no flowers at all. 



232 the wheat plant. 

Experiments with a view of ascertaining what inor- 
ganic INGREDIENTS ARE NECESSARY TO BE ADDED TO THE 
BARREN VIRGIN SOIL OP WESTPHALIA TO MAKE IT FERTILE. 

The virgin sandy soil for experiment was obtained from 
immediately beneath the depth attained from the surface by 
the forest weeds. The quantity necessary for experiment, was 
carefully dried and then thoroughly mixed, then sixty-five 
grammes were placed in each of the wax-coated vessels for 
experiment, after having been thoroughly mixed with ingredi- 
ents to be added. The plant selected for experiment was the 
white oat. 

A single grain was all that was retained in each experiment ; 
that one which germinated the best was the one used ; distilled 
water was the kind used. 1st. Without any of the artificial 
compounds it produced a very weak and delicate plant. 2nd. 
When 0.01 grm. of carbonate of ammonia was added, it pro- 
duced a plant which died in the second leaf. 3d. When 0.05 
grm. of phosphate lime was added to the ammonia named in 
the preceding experiment, a very tender and sickly plant was 
produced, in which one leaf died as fast as another was pro- 
duced. 4th. When 0.02 grm. of nitrate of potassium was 
substituted for the carbonate of ammonia, but the other ingre- 
dients the same as the preceding experiments, an exceedingly 
weak plant was produced, the fourth leaf of which became 
yellow spotted. 5th. With 0.01 grm. of nitrate of potassium 
only, the plant attained the length of three inches, but was 
very feeble. 6th. With 0.02 grm. nitrate of potash and 0.03 
grm. sulphate of lime, the plant produced was very weak. 
7th. With 0.05 grm. superphosphate of lime, 0.03 grm. of 
sulphate of lime and 0.02 grm. nitrate of potash a very vigor- 
ous plant was produced, with broad dark green leaves and 
strong stalk. 8th. With 0.1 grm. of carbonate of lime, 0.05 
superphosphate of lime, 0.01 sulphate of lime and 0.02 nitrate 
of potash, the -plant was very vigorous. 9th. With 0.05 grm. 
superphosphate of lime. 0.03 sulphate of lime, 0.02 carbonate 



WlEGMANN AND POLSTORF's EXPERIMENTS. 233 

magnesia and 0.02 of nitrate of potash, a very vigorous plant 
was produced. The result of these experiments indicate that 
not only is phosphate of lime wanting to make this barren 
soil fertile, but that sulphate of lime and potash are equally 
essential. 

These experiments are very interesting, inasmuch as they 
prove most conclusively that superphosphate or phosphoric 
acid is not the only ingredient necessary to fertilize the soil. 

After all, the plant itself is the best chemist to analyze the 
soil, and for the practical agriculturist (with his present know- 
ledge on the subject) is certainly the most unerring. 

It may not be inappropriate in this connection to insert the 
following, referred to by Liebig in his Agricultural Chemistry : 

Experiments of Weigmann and Polstorp. 
The composition of the artificial soil used in the experi- 
ments of Wiegmann and Polstorf, on the organic ingredients 
of plants, was as follows (Preischrift. p. 9) : — 

Quartzy sand 861.26 

Sulphate of potash 0.34 

Chloride of sodium 0.13 

Gypsum (anhydrous) 1.25 

Chalk (elutriated) 10.00 

Carbonate of magnesia 5.00 

Peroxide of manganese 2.50 

Peroxide of iron 10.00 

Hydrated alumina 15.00 

Phosphate of lime 15.60 

Acid of peat, with potash* 3.41 

" " soda 2.22 

" " ammonia 10.29 

" " lime * , 3.07 

u " magnesia 1.97 

" " peroxide of iron 3.22 

" " alumina 4.64 

Insoluble acid of peat 50.00 

* This salt was made by boiling common peat with weak potash ley, 
and precipitating, by means of sulphuric acid, the dark colored solution. 
20 



234 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The following experiments were instituted in pure sand, 
and in the artificial soil : 

Vicia Sativa. 

A. — In Pure Sand. — The vetches attained by the 4th of 
July a hight of ten inches, and seemed disposed to put out 
blossoms. On the 6th of the same month, the blossoms un- 
folded ; and on the 11th they formed small pods, which, how- 
ever, did not contain seeds, and withered away by the 15th. 
Similar plants, which had already begun to have yellow leaves 
below, were drawn with their roots out of the sand, the roots 
washed with distilled water, and then dried and incinerated. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The plants reached the hight of 
eighteen inches by the middle of June, so that it became 
necessary to support them with sticks ; they blossomed luxu- 
riantly on the 16th of June ; and about the 26th put out 
many healthy pods, which contained, on the 8th of August, 
ripe seeds, capable of germinating. Similar plants to the 
above were taken with the roots from the soil ; they were then 
washed and incinerated. 

HORDEUM VULGARE. 

A. — In Pure Sand. — The barley reached on the 25th of 
June, when it blossomed imperfectly, a hight of \\ foot, but 
it did not produce seed ; and, in the month of July, the points 
of the leaves became yellow; on which account, on the 1st of 

This precipitate is that termed Torfsaeure (acid of peat), in the above 
analysis. The salts of this acid, referred to in the analysis, were ob- 
tained by dissolving this acid in potash, soda, or ammonia, and by evap- 
orating the solutions ; the salts of magnesia, lime, peroxide of iron, and 
alumina, were obtained by saturating this solution with their respective 
bases, by which means double decomposition was effected. Humus is 
the substance remaining by the decay of animal and of vegetable mat- 
ters, which are seldom absent from a soil. This was replaced by the acid 
of peat in the experiments of Wiegmann and Polstorf. When the 
acid of peat is boiled for some time with water, it passes into an insoluble 
modification, denoted above as insoluble acid of peat. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH OATS AND BUCKWHEAT. 235 

August, we removed the plants from the soil, and treated them 
as before. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The barley, by the 25th of June, 
had reached a hight of 2 J feet, by which time it had blossomed 
perfectly; and yielded, on the 10th of August, ripe and per- 
fect seeds ; upon which the plants, together with their roots, 
were taken from the soil, and treated as formerly. 

Avena Sativa. 

A. — In Pure Sand. — The oats, on the 30th of June, were 
1tj feet in hight, but had blossomed very imperfectly ; they 
did not produce fruit; and, in the course of July, the points 
of their leaves became yellow, as in the case of the barley ; on 
which account the stalks were removed from the soil on the 
1st of August, and treated as formerly. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The oats reached 1\ feet on the 
28th of June, having blossomed perfectly. By the 16th of 
August they had produced ripe and perfect seeds; the stalks 
and roots were, therefore, removed from the soil, and treated 
as above. 

Polygonum Fagopyrum. 

A. — In Pure Sand. — The buckwheat, on the 8th of May, 
seemed to nourish the best of all the plants grown on pure 
sand. By the end of June, it had reached a hight of 1|- feet, 
and branched out considerably. On the 28th of June, it be- 
gan to blossom, and continued to blossom till September, with- 
out producing seeds. It would certainly have continued to 
blossom still longer, had we not removed it from the soil on 
the 4th of September, as it lost too many leaves ; it was treated 
as before. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The buckwheat grew very quickly 
in this soil, and reached a hight of 2\ feet. It branched out 
so strongly that it was necessary to support it with a stick; it 
began to blossom on the 15th of June, and produced perfect 
seeds, the greater number of which were ripe on the 12th of 



236 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

August. On the 4th of September, it was taken from the 
soil along with the roots, and treated as before, on account of 
losing too many leaves from below ; although it was partly 
still in blossom, and with unripe fruit. 

NlCOTIANA TABACUM. 

A. — In Pure Sand. — The tobacco plant sown on the 10th 
of May did not appear till the 2d of June, although it then 
grew in the normal manner ; when the plants had obtained 
their second pair of leaves I removed the superfluous plants, 
leaving only the five strongest specimens. These continued 
to grow very slowly till the occurrence of frost in October, 
and obtained only a hight of five inches, without forming a 
stem. They were removed along with their roots from the 
sand on the 21st of October, and treated as the above. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The tobacco sown on the 10th of 
May came up on the 22d of the same month, and grew 
luxuriantly. When the plants obtained the second pair 
of leaves, I withdrew the superfluous plants, and allowed only 
the three strongest to remain. These obtained stems of above 
three feet in hight, with many leaves ; on the 25th of July 
they began to blossom ; on the 10th of August they put forth 
seeds ; and, on the 8th of September, ripe seed capsules, with 
completely ripe seeds, were obtained. On the 27th of Octo- 
ber, the plants were removed from the soil, and treated as 

above. 

Trifolium Pratense. 

A. — In Pure, Sand. — The clover, which appeared on the 
5th of May. grew at first pretty luxuriantly, but reached a 
hight of only 3 1-2 inches by the 15th of October, when its 
leaves became suddenly brown, in consequence of which I 
removed it from the soil, and treated it as above. 

B. — In Artificial Soil. — The clover reached a hight of ten 
inches by the 15th of October ; it was bushy, and its color 
was dark green. It was taken from the soil, in order to com- 



i Soluble in 
muriatic acid. 


Silica. 


Ashes in 
100 parts. 


0.563 


0.442 


= 2.567 


0.563 


1.123 


= 2.432 


0.277 


2.122 


= 2.864 


8.547 


0.152 


=* 1.522 


3.187 


0.282 


= 4.687 



ASHES OF PLANTS. 237 

pare it with the former experiments, and was treated in the 
same way. 

Constituents of the Ashes of the Seed. 
100 parts of dry seeds yield — 

Soluble in 
water. 

Vicia sativa 1.562 

Honleum Vulgare 0.746 

Avena sativa 0.465 

Polygonum fagopyrum....0.823 

Trifolium pratense 1.218 

Constituents of the Ashes of the Plants grown in 
Pure Sand and in the Artificial Soil. 

Insoluble in water 
Soluble in Soluble in and muriatic acid, 
water, muriatic acid. (Silica.) Ashes. 

Viciasativa, 15 grms. ] In sand 0.516 0.375 0.135 = 1.026 

plants dried in air. j In artificial soil.0.693 0.821 0.320 = 1.834 

Horde urn vulgare, ) Sand 0.123 0.195 0.355 = 0.673 

12.5 grms. plants, j Soil 0.167 0.226 0.487 = 0.880 

Avena sativa, 13 1 Sand 0.216 0.024 0.354 = 0.594 

grms. plants j Soil 0.225 0.030 0.461=0.746 

J Sand (12 gr. 1 0<086 094 045 = 2 25 

Polygonum fagopy- plants J 

(-Soil (12.7 gr. j 0148 0> 226 0.133 = 0.507 
plants j 

Sand(4grms) a223 a252 0t0 31 = 0.506 

plants J 

Nicotiana tabacum ... c m -i hok -» 

-toon (iz.o l 114G 2.228 0.594 = 3.923 
plants J 

Trifolium pratense, j Sand 0.522 0.350 0.091 = 0.963 

14.5 grms. plants, j Soil 0.659 0.943 0.082 = 1.684 

The preceding numbers express the unequal weight of min- 
eral nutritive substances taken up from the sand and artificial 
soil by equal weights of the different plants mentioned. The 
absolute and not the relative weight of the component parts 
of the ashes is given. For example, the five tobacco plants 
grown in sand gave 0.506 gr. in ashes, while the three which 
grew in the artificial soil gave 3.923 ; five would, therefore, 



rum 



238 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



have given 6.525 gr. The proportion of the mineral ingredi- 
ents taken up by five tobacco plants from the sand, and that 
taken up from the artificial soil by an equal number of plants, 
is as 10 : 120. In an equal space of time, those which grew 
in the artificial soil absorbed nearly thirteen times more of 
inorganic ingredients than those in the sand, and the whole 
development of the plant was exactly in proportion to the 
supply of food. Wiegmann and Polstorf subtracted the ashes 
of the seed used from the numbers in the last line, which 
show the amount of ashes in a given weight of the grown 
plant; but this has caused a small error in the numbers, as 
all the plants grown in the sand were reduced to ashes, and a 
corresponding amount only of those grown in the artificial 
soil. The weight of the seed of every plant grown was three 
grammes, if we except the tobacco, which was not weighed. 

Table showing the Amount of Moisture in the Vegetable Sub- 
stances analyzed in the Experiments of Boussingault. 



Wheat 

%e 

Oats 

Wheat straw 
Rye straw... 
Oat Straw-.. 
Potatoes 



Subst. 




dried 


Water. 


at 110° C. 




0.855 


0.145 


0.834 


0.166 


0.792 


•0.208 


0.740 


0.260 


0.813 


0.187 


0.713 


0.287 


0.241 


0.759 



Beet 

Turnips 

Helianthus tub... 

Peas 

Pea straw 

Clover stalk 

Stalk of Hel. tub. 



Subst. 

dried 

at 110° C. 



0.122 
0.075 
0.208 
0.914 
0.822 
0.790 
0.871 



Water. 



0.878 
0.925 
0.792 
0.086 
0.118 
0.210 
0.129 



The foregoing are practical demonstrations of the part 
played by each inorganic substance, and the proof is conclu- 
sive that without inorganic substances and certain other con- 
ditions, such as temperature, atmosphere, light, etc., plants 
can not attain to perfection. 



GILBERT AND LAWES'' EXPERIMENTS. 239 



CHAPTER X. 

EXPERIMENTS OP GILBERT AND LAWES. 

Unfortunately for the immediate interests of agriculture; 
there are two parties, each claiming that the opponent is 
laboring under erroneous impressions. The one party is Lie- 
bigian, or followers of Liebig, who believe that mineral ma- 
nures are a sine qua non to successful agriculture, while the 
opponents (who are chiefly to be found marshaling under the 
banner of Messrs. Gilbert and Lawes, of England) are advo- 
cates of organic manures. The experiments of Salm Horst- 
marr, and those referred to by Liebig, are not introduced with 
a view of interfering with the discussion or investigation of 
the parties, but as a record of a series of experiments, which, 
in the opinion of the writer, have been made in the right 
direction, and in the same spirit and with the same intent, the 
following extract from experiments, by Messrs. Gilbert & 
Lawes, is introduced : * 

The composition of the grain yielding the most important 
article of human food in temperate climates, its yield of val- 
uable products, and the varying composition either of the 
grain itself, or of these products, according to the conditions 
of growth, or the circumstances of after preparation, are sub- 
jects worthy the attention equally of states and of men of 
science. Accordingly we find, that a chemical examination 
of wheat grain and its products, has from time to time been 
undertaken by chemists of repute ; sometimes as a matter of 
private investigation, and at others of public inquiry ; and 

* On some points in the composition of wheat grain, its products in 
the mill and bread. London, 1857. 57pp. 8 vo. 



240 THE WHEAT I'LANT. 

almost as numerous as the names of experimenters, are the 
special lines of research which they have selected. 

We are indebted to Beccaria for the first notice, more than 
a century ago, of the gluten in wheat. Among the earlier 
investigators of the subsequent period, are Proust, Vauque- 
lin, De Saussure and Vogel, who have examined the proxi- 
mate principles, and some of the changes to which they are 
subject, in various descriptions of wheat, of flour, or of bread. 
M. Boussingault has somewhat elaborately studied various 
branches of the subject more recently ; and we are indebted to 
Dumas, Payen, Johnson, and Dr. B. D. Thomson, for original 
as well as a considerable amount of collected information. 
The most recent, on some points, the most detailed, and from 
advance in methods, perhaps on some also the most reliable, 
are the results of M. Peiigot, in 1849, on the proximate con- 
stitution of various kinds of wheat, and of M. Millon, in 
1849 and 1854, on somewhat similar points. Lastly, in 1853, 
M. Poggiale, and in 1855, Dr. Maclagan, have given the 
results of their investigations on the characters and composi- 
tion of bread. 

Besides these more general investigations, we have had in 
recent times many special inquiries connected with our sub- 
ject. Thus, M. Boussingault has given us an analysis of the 
ashes of wheat; and many other such analyses have been 
made in Germany, and elsewhere, since the first appearance in 
1840, of Baron Liebig's work on " Chemistry in its Applica- 
tions to Agriculture and Physiology." In this country, Mr. 
Way has given us the most extensive series of wheat-grain-ash 
analyses, his list including those of twenty-six specimens. 

The plan of our own investigation, which unfortunately has 
been much less perfectly filled up than we at first intended, was 
entered upon more than a dozen years ago, and was devised 
with reference to the following points : 

1st. The influence of varying characters of season, and of 
various manuring, upon the organic and mineral composition 
of wheat grain. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH VARIETIES. 241 

2d. The characters of varieties, especially in relation to 
their adaptation, and the qualities, they then develop, under 
the influence of broader distinctions as to locality, altitude, 
latitude and varying climatic circumstances generally. 

It is in the second branch of the inquiry that we have fallen 
the furthest short of our intentions. With a view to its pros- 
ecution, a journey through the chief corn growing districts 
of Europe, commencing at the northernmost point at which 
wheat is grown successfully, was about to be undertaken in 
1848 ; but the social disturbances on the continent at that 
period, necessarily prevented it. The plan proposed was — to 
collect information, as to the geological and meteorological 
characters of the various localities, as to the mode of culture, 
and as to the general average yield, both in straw and grain ; 
and lastly, to procure characteristic specimens for chemical 
examination at home. Failing entirely in the execution of 
this design, the exhibition of 1851 was looked forward to as 
an opportunity for procuring specimens not only of wheat, 
but of other vegetable products, and perhaps also important 
particulars of their growth, from various countries and 
climates. Such, however, was the division of authority, and 
such the alleged preference given to public institutions in 
such matters, that, whether the latter benefited or not, the 
collection which we, as private individuals, were enabled to 
make, was entirely inadequate to our object. From these 
difficulties it is, that our second main object of inquiry was 
necessarily to a great extent abandoned. Chiefly for this reason, 
but partly owing to the pressure of other subjects, the first or 
more limited or local branch of the investigation has in recent 
years been but imperfectly followed up. And, as it is proba- 
ble that it must for some time remain so, it has been thought 
desirable to put on record the results already obtained ; hoping 
that they may serve the double purpose, of confirming or 
adding to previously existing knowledge, and of indicating to 
others the points most requiring further study. 
21 



242 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The following is a brief outline of the plan of investiga- 
tion which has yielded the results which we have now to lay 
before the society : 

From the same season 1843-4, up to the present time, wheat 
has been growing in the field continuously, both without 
manure, by ordinary, and by various chemical manures. As 
a general rule, the same description of manure has succeeded 
year after year on the same plot of land. The amount of 
produce, corn, straw and chaff, and its characters as to weight 
per bushel, etc., have in every case, been carefully ascertained 
and recorded. Samples from each plot — both grain and straw 
— have also been collected every year. Of each of these sam- 
ples, two weighed portions are coarsely ground ; the dry matter 
determined at a temperature of 212° ; and the ash by burning 
on sheets of platinum, in cast iron muffles arranged for that 
purpose.* Other weighed portions of grain and straw are 
partially dried, so as to prevent their decomposition ; and 
in this state they are preserved for any examination of 
their organic constituents. By this course of procedure, 
a vast mass of results has been obtained, illustrating the influ- 
ence of season and manuring, upon the percentage of dry 
substance, and of mineral constituents, in the produce. In 
selected cases, the nitrogen in the grain, and in the straw, has 
been determined. A summary table of these dry matter, ash, 
and nitrogen results, will be given below. In from twenty 
to thirty cases complete analyses of the grain ashes have been 
made, and the results of these will be given in full. 

Besides the experiments above described, in selected cases, 
chiefly from the produce of the earlier years of the field ex- 
periments, it was sought to ascertain the comparative yield 
of flour, and also the characters of the flour, of grain grown 
by different manures in the same season, or by the produce 
of different seasons. The colonist's steel liandm ill was first had 

*The dry matter and ash, were not determined in such complete series 
in the earlier years, as in the later. 



METHOD OF EXPERIMENTS. 243 

recourse to for this purpose. But it was soon found that it 
was extremely difficult so to regulate the machine, as to secure 
uniform action upon the different grains; and it was further 
found, that the grain, and especially the bran, was cut up 
rather than crushed, so as to leave too much of flour in the 
portion separated as bran, and too much of bran in that sepa- 
rated as flour; and hence the results were not sufficiently 
comparable with those of the ordinary mill. Arrangements 
were therefore made for prosecuting the inquiry at a flour mill 
in the neighborhood, worked by water power. Weighed 
quantities of the selected samples (from 125 to 250 lbs. each) 
were passed through the stones, and the " ineaV thus obtained 
through the dressing machine, under our own personal super- 
intendence ; great care being taken to clear from the different 
parts of the apparatus the whole of one lot, before another 
was commenced upon. 

The yield in the dressing machine of each of the differ- 
ent products was ascertained, and its percentage in relation 
to the total grain or its "meal," has been calculated. Portions 
of each of these products have had their dry matter (at 212°) 
and their mineral matter (by burning on platinum) deter- 
mined. The percentage of nitrogen in a few selected series — 
from the finest flour down to the coarsest bran — has also been 
estimated ; and in the same cases, the amounts of one or tw(? 
of the more important constituents of the ash have also been 
determined. The results of these dry matter, ash, nitrogen, 
and constituent of ash determinations, in the series of differ- 
ent products obtained in the mill, will be given in tables 
further on. 

The original design was to complete the examination of the 
mill products, by determining, in several series of them, the 
percentage of each of their proximate organic principles ; 
and also the amount and composition of mineral matters, asso- 
ciated with them respectively. It was hoped, by this latter 
inquiry, to obtain important collateral information, bearing 
upon the influence of various constituents upon the healthy 



244 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and special development of the plant. Although, however, 
specimens of the flour are preserved for this purpose, as well 
as the ashes of each crude product, it is feared that this sub- 
ject can not be proceeded with, at least for a considerable 
time to come. 

Portions of the different products of the dressing machine 
(including more or less of the finest flour, of the more granu- 
lar, or of the more branny particles respectively), from grains 
of somewhat various history of growth, having been experi- 
mented upon to ascertain their comparative bread-making 
qualities ; and these results, together with a few examinations 
of baker's bread, and a discussion of the results of other ex- 
perimenters, as to the yield of bread from a given amount of 
flour, and the percentage of water and of nitrogen in the 
former, will be given below. 

"With this short outline of the plan of investigation which 
has been pursued, we proceed now to a discussion of the 
results which have been obtained. 

In Table I. are given, in the first four columns, certain 
prominent characters of the produce of each of ten years of 
the successive growth of wheat as above described. The 
items are : 

The total produce per acre (corn and straw), in lbs. ; 
The per cent, of corn in the total produce : 
The per cent, of dressed corn in the total ; and, 
The weight per bushel of dressed corn in lbs. 

The figure given for each year, generally represents the 
average of about forty cases ; and the characters enumerated 
are the best which can be given in a summary and numerical 
form, to indicate the more or less favorable condition of the 
respective seasons for the healthy development of the crop, 
and the perfect maturation of the grain. 

In the second set of three columns are given, side by side 
with the general characters just described, the percentages in 
the grain of each year : 



SUMMARY OF EXPERIMENTS. 



245 



Of dry substance ; 

Of ash in dry substance ; 

Of nitrogen in dry substance ; 
the two former items being in most cases the average of 30 to 
40 cases in each year ; but the per cent, of nitrogen is, in each 
instance, the mean of a few selected cases only. 

In the third set of three columns, are given similar particu- 
lars relating to the composition of the straw. The percent- 
ages of dry substance and of ash in the straw, are, however, 
not the averages of so many cases in each year, as are those 
for the corn ; and the determinations of nitrogen in the straw, 
have also been made in fewer cases than in the grain. 

TABLE I. 

GENERAL SUMMARY. 





Particulars of the 


Composition of 


Composition 


of 




Produce. 




Graijs 


'. 




Straw. 






*S ^ 


>-d 


re 


^ 


*n 


T> 


*p 


51 


51 


H3 




cd o 


o 


cd 


a> 


a 


<x> 


o 


CD 


CD 




>-i e-t- 


&■ 4 


«' ** 


Cl, cd 


<-i 


>-i 


d, <-i 


<-i 


>S 




< 


JO >— 

cd o 
g-0 


>s a 
o £. 
&. • 
a a 


o 

o a 


3^ 

en a^ 

CO <r>- 

o 2 


n 
cd 

a 


o 

CO 

a 
pi- 
gs 


: a 
: a 


o 

CD 

a 


2 * 

a 

P 


** CD 

a 
a 


CD 

xe 


!fcg 


a o 
cd 3 


2 ™ 


o n 

3 ^ 


4 
H 


m 




i 
■^ 


X? 


~~. 


& 


Vj £L> 


• 3 




a E 


, — « 


t-u 


: o 


,. — ^ 


M. 


o 




* » 


, 


p. 


_. cc 


to 


3 


: aq 


to 


a 


';-. 






. 3 




a a - 


»— ' 




. cd 


i— ' 




CD 




*-l 






_ CD 


to 


& 


: a 


to 


Qj 


3 




CD 

Sj 


: o 
i 




oE o 
56.7 


o 


-5 


i a' 
2.25 


o 


**1 


a 


1845 


5545 


33.1 


90.1 


80.8 


1.91 




7.06 


0.92 


1846 


4114 


43.1 


93.2 


63.1 


84.3 


1.96 


2.15 




6.02 


0.67 


1847 


5221 


36.4 


98.6 


62.0 






2.30 




5.56 


0.73 


1848 


4517 


36.7 


89.0 


58.5 


80.3 


2.02 


2.39 




7.24 


0.78 


1849 


5321 


40.9 


95.5 


63.5 * 


83.1 


1.84 


1.94 


82.6 


6.17 


0.82 


1850 


5496 


33.6 


94.3 


60.9- 


84.4 


1.99 


2.15 


84.4 


5.88 


0.87 


1851 


5279 


38.2 


92.1 


62.6 


84.2 


1.89 


1.98 


84.7 


5.88 


0.78 


1852 


4299 


31.6 


92.1 


56.7 


83.2 


2.00 


2.38 


82.6 


6.53 


0.79 


1853 


3932 


25.1 


85.9 


50.2 


80.8 


2.24 


2.35 


81.0 


6.27 


1.20 


1854 


6803 


35.8 


95.6 


61.4 


84.9 

82.9 


1.93 

1.98 


2.14 

2.20 


83.7 


5.08 


0.69 


Means. 


5053 


35.4 


92.1 


59.6 


83.2 


6.17 
i 

! 


0.82 



246 TII E WHEAT PLANT. 

It will thus be seen that the preceding table affords a sum- 
mary view of a really enormous amount of experimental result, 
and we ought to be able by its means to discover, at least the 
broad and characteristic effects of varying seasons, upon the 
composition of the crop.* This, indeed, is all we could hope 
to attain, in such a mere outline and general treatment of the 
subject as is appropriate to our present purpose. 

Leaving then out of view all minor points, and confining 
ourselves to our already defined object — namely, that of ascer- 
taining the general direction of the influence of variation of 
season upon the composition of the wheat crop — we can not 
fail to see, that wherever the three items indicating the quality 
of the produce markedly distinguish the crop as favorably 
developed, we have a general tendency to a high percentage 
of dry substance, and to a low percentage both of mineral 
matter, and of nitrogen in that dry substance. This general- 
ization is more especially applicable to the grain ; but with 
some exceptions, mostly explicable on a detailed consideration 
of the circumstances and degree of its development, it applies 
to a great extent to the straw also. 

Let us take in illustration the extreme cases in the table. 
The seasons o*f 1846, 1849, and 1851, with, in the cases of 
the two latter, large produce also, give us the best proportion 
of corn in total produce, more than the average proportion of 
dressed corn in total corn, and the highest weight per bushel, 
a very significant character. With this cumulative evidence 
as to the relatively favorable development and maturation of 
these crops, we find the grain in two of the cases, to be among 
the highest in percentage of dry matter; and in the third 
(1849) though not so high as we should have expected, it is 

•It should be stated, that up to 1848 inclusive, the description of wheat 
was the Old Red Lammas; from 1849 to 1852 inclusive, it was the Red 
Cluster, and since that time the Rostock. The variations, according to 
season, both in the character and composition of the produce, are, how- 
ever, very marked within the period of growth of each separate de- 
scription. 



EFFECTS OF SEASONS. 247 

still above the average. The percentages of mineral matter 
and of nitrogen in the dry substances of the grain are at 
the same time in these three cases, the lowest in the series. 
The seasons of 1850 and 1854 again, with large amounts of 
produce, yielded also very fairly developed grain ; and coinci- 
dent ly they afford a high percentage of dry substance, and 
lower percentages both of mineral matter, and of nitrogen, in 
that dry substance, than the cases of obviously inferior matu- 
ration. V/ith some exceptions, it will be seen, that the straws 
also of these five better years, give a tendency to low percent- 
ages both of mineral matter and of nitrogen in their dry sub- 
stance. 

Turning now to the converse aspect, the season of 1853, 
shows itself in the general characters of the produce, to have 
been in every respect the least favorable to the crop ; and it 
should be added that in this instance (as well as in 1845, to 
which we shall next refer) the seed was not sown until the 
spring. In 1853 the produce of grain was small, as well as 
very bad in quality ; and with these characters, we have in 
the grain nearly the lowest percentage of dry matter and the 
highest percentage of ash and of nitrogen in that dry matter. 
In the straw, too, the dry matter is low, the ash somewhat high, 
the nitrogen much the highest in the series. In 1845, another 
year of spring-sowing, and at the same time of very bad 
quality of produce, we have nevertheless a large amount of 
growth ; a fact which tends to explain some of the differences 
in composition as compared with 1853. Thus, 1845 gives us 
low percentage of dry matter, but not very high, either ash or 
nitrogen, in the grain. The straw, however, gives high per- 
cents both of ash and of nitrogen ; it being in the latter 
point next in order to 1853. The seasons of 1848 and 1852 
again show low characters of produce. The former has coin- 
cidently the lowest percentage of dry matter in the grain in 
the series ; and both have high percentage of ash and nitro- 
gen in the dry substance of the grain. In the straw, the ash 
is in 1848 the highest, and in 1852 above the average ; the 



248 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

nitrogen in dry matter of straw being however in neither 
instance high. 

In several of the cases there cited, there are deviations from 
our general assumption on one point or other. But an exam- 
ination in greater detail, would in most or all of them clear 
up the apparent discrepancy. When indeed, we bear in mind 
how infinitely varied was the mutual adaptation of climatic 
circumstances to stage of growth of the plant, in almost every 
case, it would indeed be anomalous, did we not find a corres- 
ponding variation on some point or other, in the characters 
or composition of the crop. Still, we have the fact broadly 
marked, that within the range of our own locality and climate, 
high maturation of the wheat crop is, other things being equal, 
generally associated with a high percentage of dry substance, 
and a low percentage of both mineral and nitrogenous con- 
stituents. Were we, however, extending the period of our 
review, and going into detail as to varying climatic circum- 
stances, interesting exceptions could be pointed out. 

It may be observed in passing, that owing to the general 
relationships of the amounts of corn to straw, and the gener- 
ally coincident variations in the percentages of nitrogen in 
each, the tendency of all these variations is in a degree so to 
neutralize each other, as to give a comparatively limited range 
of difference in the figures, representing for each year, the 
percentage of nitrogen in the dry substance of the total pro- 
duce — corn and straw together. 

The tendency of maturation, to reduce the percentages of 
mineral matter, and frequently of nitrogen also, is not 
observable in corn crops alone. We have fully illustrated it 
in the case of the turnip ; and our unpublished evidence in 
regard to some other crops, goes in the same direction. The 
fact is indeed very important to bear in mind ; for it consti- 
tutes an important item in our study of the variations which 
are found to exist in the composition both of the organic sub- 
stance, and of the ash, of one and the same crop, grown undei 



INFLUENCE OF MANURES. 249 

different circumstances. We may particularly observe, that 
the obvious reduction in the percentage of nitrogen in wheat 
grain, the more, within certain climatic limits, the seed is per- 
fected, is in itself a fact of the highest interest ; ant it is the 
more so, when we consider how exceedingly dependent for 
full growth, is this crop upon a liberal supply of available 
nitrogen within the soil. 

Bearing in mind, then, the general points of relationship 
which have been established between the characters of the 
crop as to development and maturation on the one hand, and 
the percentage amounts of certain constituents on the other, 
let us now see — what is the general influence of characteristic 
constituents of manure, upon the characters and composition 
of our wheat crop, which is allowed to remain on the land 
until the plant has fulfilled its highest function — namely, that 
of producing a ripened seed ? 

In illustration of this point we have arranged in Table III., 
the same particulars as to general character of the crop, and 
as to the composition of the produce, from several individual 
plots during the ten years ; instead of the average of the 
series in each year, as in Table I. The cases selected for the 
comparison are : — 

1. A continuously unmanured plot; 

2. A plot having an excess of ammoniacal salts alone every 
year ; 

3. The average of several plots, each having the same amount 
of ammoniacal salts as the plot just mentioned, but with it a 
more or less perfect provision by manure, of the miwral con- 
stituents also. 

It would be impossible to give the detail supplying all the 
results collected in this Table ; but perhaps it is only proper 
that we should do so, so far at least as the percentage of nitro- 
gen in the dry substance of the grain is concerned. 



250 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



TABLE II. 

Determinations of Nitrogen per cent, in the Dry Matter of Wheat Grain 

grown at Rothamsted. 



Harvests. 



EXPERIMENTS. 



;Mean. 



Unmanured. 



1845 

1846 

1847 


2.28 
2.11 
2.11 
2.33 
1.85 
2.07 
1.80 
2.31 
2.2G 
2.06 


2.21 
2.12 
2.08 
2.34 
1.83 

1.74 
2.23 

2.06 


2^33 

2.22 
2.32 
1.91 
2.10 
1.89 
2.38 
2.33 
1.98 


2.30 

2.22 
2.37 

2.07 
1.76 
2.31 
2.38 
1.96 





2.28 
2.11 
2.16 


1848 


2.34 


1849 


1.86 


1850 


2.08 


1851 


1.80 


1852 


2.31 


1853 

1854 


2.32 
2.01 



Manured with Ammoniacal Salts Only. 



1845 
1846 
1847 
1848 
1849 
1850 
1851 
1852 
1853 
1854 



1 
2.18 


2.29 


2.22 


2.23 




2.18 


2.12 


2.29 


2.19 




2.35 


2.29 


2.42 


2.32 




2.39 


2.41 


2.39 


2.49 




1.89 




2.04 


1.22 




2.13 




2.08 


2.19 




2.15 


2.12 


2.09 


2.25 




2.41 


2.50 


2.44 


2,58 




2.43 


2.48 


2.37 


2.44 




2.31 


2.22 


2.31 


2.37 





2.23 
2.19 
2.34 
2.42 
1.95 
2.13 
2.15 
2.48 
2.43 
2.30 



Manured with Ammoniacal Salts and Mineral Manure. (Mixed 

Plots.) 



1845 
1846 
1847 
1848 
1849 
1850 
1851 
1852 
1853 
1854 



2.20 


2.14 




2.14 




'2.8 i 


2.38 


2.40 


2.42 


2.44 


2..)') 




2.40 


2 42 


2.48 


1.96 


1.97 


2.10 


2 07 




2.16 


2.2s 


2.25 


Z25 




2.00 


1.98 


2.02 


1.92 




2.43 


2.3< 


2.31 


2.40 


2.32 


2.30 


2.34 


2.29 


2.28 




2.16 




2.12 


2.07 






2.16 
2.40 
2.41 
2.02 
2.23 
1.98 
2.36 
2.30 
2.12 



MODE OF DETERMINING THE NITROGEN. 251 

It is necessary to make a few remarks in reference to this 
Table of more than one hundred nitrogen determinations. 
They were made by the method of burning with soda-lime, 
and collecting and weighing as platinum salt in the ordinary 
way. Few, perhaps, who have only made a limited number 
of such determinations, then, only on pure and uniform sub- 
stances, and who have not attempted to control their work at 
another period, with fresh re-agents, or by the work of an- 
other operator, will imagine the range of variation which is 
to be expected when all these adverse elements are to have 
their influence. It is freely granted, that the variations shown 
in the Table between one determination and another, on one 
and the same substance, are sometimes more than could be 
desired. The following, however, are the circumstances un- 
der which they have been obtained. Experiments one and 
two were pretty uniformly made by the same operator, but not 
all consecutively, or with the same batch of re-agents. It was 
thought, therefore, that independently of any variations be- 
tween the two determinations, it would be desirable to have 
results, so important in their bearings, verified by others. 
Accordingly, samples of each of the ground grains were given 
under arbitrary numbers, to two other operators, and their 
results are recorded respectively in columns three and four ; 
and where a fifth determination is given, it is a repetition by 
one or other of the experimenters last referred to. We 
should observe, that we have found it almost impossible to 
procure a soda-lime that will not give more or less indication 
of nitrogen when burnt with an organic substance not con- 
taining it ; and hence we have at length adopted the plan of 
mixing one-half per cent, of non-nitrogenous substance in- 
timately with the bulk of soda-lime, igniting it in a muffle, 
moistening and reheating it gently. After this treatment the 
soda-lime is free from ammonia-yielding matter. It should 
further be remembered, that a ground wheat-grain is by no 
means an uniform substance. Indeed, as we shall show further 
on, some of the particles of which such a powder is composed, 



252 the wnEAT plant. 

may contain half as much again of nitrogen as others ; and thus 
any inefficiency in the grinding, or error in taking the portion 
for analysis, may materially affect the result. Notwithstanding 
all these circumstances, and the admitedly undesirable range 
of difference in the several determinations in some cases, it will 
be observed, that generally three at least of the numbers agree 
sufficiently closely, and in some cases the fourth also. In fact, 
after all, a study of the detailed table must give considerable 
confidence, at least in the direction of the variations between 
the mean results given in Table III., and in their sufficiency for 
the arguments founded upon them. With these remarks on the 
data, let us proceed with the discussion of the table itself. 

A glance at this Table III., shows that the quantity of pro- 
duce varies very much indeed in one and the same season, 
according to the manuring. With these great differences in 
the quantities, dependent on manuring, we have far less marked 
differences in the quality of this ripened crop, dependent on 
the same causes ; and this, with some few exceptions, is the 
same whether we look to the columns indicating the general 
characters only, or the composition of the produce. That is 
to say, the same general distinctions between the produce of 
one season and another are observable under the several vary- 
ing conditions of manuring in each, as have been exhibited in 
Table I. of averages alone. In fact, season or climate varia- 
tions are seen to have much more influence than manuring, 
upon the character and composition of the crop. 

We have said that, other things being equal, the percentage 
of nitrogen in our wheat grain was the lower the more the 
seed was perfected ; and we have also said, that nitrogenous 
manures greatly aid the development of the crop. But, an 
inspection of the columns of Table III. (on next page), which 
give the percentages of nitrogen in the dry substances of the 
grains produced under the three different conditions of man- 
uring specified, shows us that there is almost invariably a 
higher percentage of nitrogen, where ammoniacal salts alone 
have been employed, than where the crop was unmanured. 



ANALYTICAL TABLE. 



253 



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251 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

We also see that, almost invariably, there is a higher per- 
centage of nitrogen where mineral manures as well as ammo- 
niacal salts have been used, than in the produce of the cor- 
responding unmanured plots. A closer examination shows, 
however, though the indication is not uniform, that there is, 
nevertheless, an obvious tendency to a lower percentage of 
nitrogen, where the mineral constituents also have been em- 
ployed, than where the ammoniacal salts have been used alone ; 
and with this there is, on the average, a somewhat higher 
weight per bushel, indicating higher degree of maturation. 
Then, again, what are the circumstances of these experiments, 
under which an increased percentage of nitrogen in the fixed 
substance of the produce, is obtained by a supply of it in 
manure? The unmanured plot, with its low percentage of 
nitrogen in produce, is shown by the field experiments, to be 
greatly exhausted of the annually available nitrogen, relatively 
to the annually available mineral constituents required by the 
wheat crop. The plot, with the ammoniacal salts alone, is 
shown by the field results to be defective in the requisite and 
available minerals, relatively to the available nitrogen, and 
hence the crop is grown under a relative excess of the latter. 
Again, the plots with mineral manures and ammoniacal salts 
together, received so far an excess of the latter, as to yield, 
with the minerals, a larger crop than the average of the lo- 
cality under rotation, and larger also than the average of sea- 
sons would ripen healthily. It is then, under these artificial 
and abnormal circumstances, of the somewhat unnaturally 
low percentage of nitrogen, from obvious defect of it in rela- 
tion to the developing and maturing capabilities of the season 
on the one hand, and the obviously relative excess of it on 
the other, that we got an increased percentage of nitrogen in 
wheat-grain by the use of it in manure. Even under these 
extreme conditions, the range of variation by manuring is 
very small; and there is nothing in the evidence that justifies 
the opinion, that, within the range of full crops and healthy 
maturation, the percentage of nitrogen in wheat-grain, can 



AMOUNT OF MATTER DEPENDS ON MATURITY. 

be increased at pleasure by the use of it in manure. That 
very opposite extremes of condition of soil-supply, may 
directly influence the composition even of wheat-grain, is 
however illustrated in the percentages of mineral matter, as 
well as those of nitrogen, given in the table. Thus, taking 
the mean results only, we have, with the relative excess of 
mineral constituents on the unmanured plot, the highest per 
cent, in the produce; with the greatest relative defect on the 
plot with ammoniacal salts only, the lowest per cent, in the 
grain ; and with the medium relation in the other plots, the 
medium per cent, in the produce. Excepting, however, ab- 
normal conditions, as already remarked, variation in climatic 
circumstances, has niuch greater influence on the percentage- 
composition of wheat-grain, than variation in manuring. 

Let us now turn to the composition of the ash of wheat- 
grain. Independently of the defect of a sufficient number of 
published analyses of wheat-grain ash, a dozen years ago, 
when we took up the subject, it was then generally believed 
that the composition of the ash of vegetable produce, would 
vary considerably with the supplies of the different constitu- 
ents in the soil ; it was thought, indeed, that according to the 
abundance of their presence, one base might substitute an- 
other, as for instance, soda, potash, and so on. About the 
same time that we undertook a series of wheat-ash analyses, 
the ashes of various succulent vegetables were also analysed. 
This latter investigation led us to conclude, that the fixity of 
the composition of the ash of such substances, depended very 
much upon the degree of maturation of the produce ; and in 
fact that some constituents — soda and chlorine for instance — 
occurred in much larger quantities in the more succulent and 
unripe, than in the more elaborated specimens. It seemed to 
be perfectly consistent with this experience, to find in the ash 
of a comparatively perfected vegetable product like wheat- 
grain, a considerable uniformity of composition — such indeed 
as -the analyses now to be recorded will indicate. 

These analyses were made ten years ago by Mr. Dugald 



256 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Campbell, and the late Mr. Ashford. And as, since that time, 
the methods of ash-analysis have in some points been im- 
proved upon, it will be well to give an outline of the plan 
then adopted : especially as it is by a consideration of the ten- 
dencies to error on some points, that we must interpret the 
bearings of the actual figures given. On this point we need 
only add, that Mr. Campbell fully concurs in the tenor of oir 
remarks. 

Method of Analysis'. — Three portions of ash were taken. 

No. 1. In this the sand, silica, and charcoal, phosphate of 
iron, phosphoric acid, lime, and magnesia, were determined. 
The ash was dissolved in dilute hydrochloric acid, evaporated 
to perfect dryness, moistened with hydrochloric acid, boiled 
with water, and the insoluble matter collected and weighed, 
as — sand, silica, and charcoal. To the filtrate, acetate of am- 
monia was added after digestion, the precipitate separated, 
dried, ignited, and weighed — as phosphate of iron. To the fil- 
trate now obtained, a solution of a weighed portion of pure 
iron dissolved in nitro-hydrochloric acid was added, then 
acetate of ammonia, and the mixture digested until the whole 
of the iron was precipitated as phosphate of the peroxide with 
excess of peroxide from which was calculated the phosphoric 
acid. From the solution filtered from the phosphate of iron 
and oxide of iron, the lime was separated as oxalate and 
ignited as carbonate ; and from this last filtrate, the magnesia, 
by phosphate of soda and ammonia. 

No. 2. A second portion of ash was put into a carbonic acid 
apparatus, the acid, if any, evolved by means of nitric acid, 
and determined by the loss. The solution being filtered, sul- 
phuric acid was separated by nitrate of baryta; and afterward 
chlorine by nitrate of silver. 

No. 3. To a solution of a weighed portion of the ash in 
hydrochloric acid, caustic baryta was added in excess, and the 
precipitate separated by filtration ; the excess of baryta was 
then removed by carbonate of Ammonia, and the filtered solu- 
tion evaporated to dryness, the residue heated to redness and 



PROBABLE ERRORS AS TO BASES. 257 

weighed; water added, any insoluble deducted, and the re- 
mainder taken as chlorides of potassium and sodium ; a solu- 
tion of chloride of platinum was now added to separate the 
■potash; the soda being calculated from the loss. 

It is now admitted, that the separation of phosphate of 
iron from the earthly phosphates by acetates of ammonia as 
above described, is unsatisfactory ; and it is probable the 
amounts given in the tables as phosphate of iron are too high, 
and if so, part of the difference should obviously go to the 
earthy bases. For a similar reason, it is possible that the 
phosphoric acid determinations may be somewhat too high — 
also at the expense of the earthy bases. Then, again, it is 
well known that in practice the process for potash and soda is 
one of some delicacy ; and that the tendency of manipulative 
error is to give the soda somewhat too high. We conclude 
upon the whole, that our phosphoric acid determinations may 
be somewhat high ; our phosphate of iron pretty certainly so ; 
and probably the soda also ; the other bases being, on this 
supposition, given somewhat too low. 

The wheat-grain ash-analyses, twenty-three in number, and 
referring to the produce of three separate seasons, and of 
very various manuring, are given in the following tables — 
numbered IV., V., and VI. respectively. 
22 



258 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



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TABULAR STATEMENT OF EXPERIMENTS. 



259 



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PHOSPHATES ESSENTIAL TO WHEAT. 261 

It is at once seen, that this ash may be reckoned to contain 
neither sulphuric acid, carbonic acid, nor chlorine. The latter 
at least occurred only occasionally, and then in such small 
quantities as to lead us to the supposition that its presence is 
accidental, or at any rate not essential, in the ash of a per- 
fectly ripened grain. From the frequent absence of soda 
again, and from the uncertainty in its determinations as above 
alluded to, we are led to look at it as an equally unessential 
ingredient in the grain-ash of perfectly ripened wheat. Ex- 
cluding then the chlorine, the soda, the iron of the phosphate 
of iron, and that portion of the matter collected as insoluble, 
which may have been soluble silica — the whole of these, on the 
average, amounting to a very few per cent. — the ash of wheat- 
grain is seen to consist essentially of phosphates only ; the 
bases being potash, magnesia and lime. The potash amounts 
to nearly one-third of the whole ash ; the magnesia to rather 
more than one-third of the potash ; and the lime to about one- 
third of the magnesia. 

If we now compare with one another the analyses of the 
eight different ashes in 1844, those of the seven in 1845, or of 
the six in 1846, having regard to the manures by which the 
crops were grown, it is impossible to say that these have had 
any direct and well-defined influence upon the composition of 
the ash of the grain. Thus we find, looking at the Table for 
1844, that several of the plots manured with super-phosphate 
of lime, yield a grain-ash having no higher percentage of 
phosphoric acid than that of the unmanured plot. Again, 
where potash is added (plots 15, 16 and 18), the percentage 
of it in the ash is not greater than the average of the cases 
where it was not employed. And again, in the only case 
where soda was employed (plot 16), there is none of it found 
in the ash ; nor, lastly, is the percentage of magnesia ob- 
viously increased by the use of it in manure. A similar de- 
tailed consideration of the composition of the ashes of the 
seasons of 1845 and 1846, would, as already intimated, lead to 
a similar conclusion. In fact, the variations in the composi- 



262 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

tion of the ash of this supposed ripened product, according to 
the manure by which it is grown, seem to be scarcely beyond 
the limits of error in the manipulation of the analysis ; though, 
one case at least of the duplicate analysis of the same ash — 
namely, that of No. 9, 1844 — indicates the range of variation 
from this cause to have been but small; in the other (No. 17, 
1845), it was somewhat greater. 

Although the accuracy of the analyses may not be such as 
to show the difference in composition, if any, dependent on 
manure, yet it is found to be quite adequate to indicate the 
marked differences in the degree of development and maturation 
of the grains, dependent upon season. Before calling atten- 
tion to the figures illustrating this point, it should be re- 
marked that the season of 1845 was the worst but one, and 
that of 1846 nearly the best, for ripening the grain, during 
the thirteen years of our continuous growth of wheat. And 
we shall find, consistently with this, and with the conclusions 
arrived at in connection with Tables I. and III., that the 
variation in the composition of the ash is, comparing one year 
with another, much the greatest in the produce of the bad 
ripening season 1845, and much the least in the good ripening 
season 1846. This point, and some others are illustrated in 
the following Summary Table, No. VII. 



TABULAR STATEMENT OP ANALYSES. 



263 



















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Sulphuric 


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58 


mposition 
Phosphori 
Phosphate 
Potass. 


Per Cent. 

(at 2 

Per Cent. 


aracters o 
Per Cent. 
Weight, p 
Corn 




1 


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Eta : 

g : 

3 • 


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of A si 
c Acid, 
i of Iro 


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Ash in 


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Corn in Tot 
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264 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Looking at the first Division of this Table VII., it is seen 
that in the item of phosphoric acid, the variation in the per- 
centage among the several cases in each year, is the greatest 
in 1845, and the least in 1846 ; in the phosphate of iron, it is 
the greatest in 1845 ; in the potash, it is the greatest in 1845, 
much less and about equal, in 1844 and 1846 ; in the soda, it 
is much the greatest in 1845, and much the least in 1846 ; in 
the magnesia, it is again far the greatest in 1845, and it is the 
least in 1846. In the case of the lime, we have an exception 
to this general indication, dependent on the two low amounts 
of it given for Nos. 2 and 3, 1846; but if these are really in 
error in the direction suggested at the foot of Table VI., the 
indication would be the same as for the other constituents. 
We have then in the circumstances of the seasons, and in the 
comparative characters of the produce coincident with these 
variations, the evidence that for one and the same description 
of grain, in a perfectly matured condition, the composition of 
the ash will be, within certain narrow limits, constant. 

So far as the constituents of the ash of the entire grain of 
wheat is concerned, we have only further to call attention to 
the three other Divisions of this Summary Table No. VII. 
In these are shown, side by side : 

In the second Division of the Table, the mean composition 
of the ashes for each of the three separate years ; 

In the third Division, the mean composition for the three 
years together : (a) of the grain-ash from the unmanured 
plot— (6) of that from the farm-yard manured plot — (c) of the 
grain -ashes from all the other manures during the three years, 
including 17 cases; and 

In the fourth and last Division, the mean composition of 
all our own wheat grain-ashes analyzed, 23 in number, by the 
side of the mean of 26 analyses of the grain-ashes of wheat, 
of different descriptions or grown in different localities, pub- 
lished by Mr. Way. 

We will go into very little detail discussions of these mean 
results, as the points they illustrate have most of them already 



CONCLUSION OF EXPERIMENTS. 265 

been alluded to. We may first remark, that the mean percent- 
age of lime is the least in the bad year 1845, and the greatest in 
the good year 1846. Again, it is greater in the average from the 
manured plots, than in that from the unmanured. We may 
perhaps here anticipate by saying, that this is at any rate con- 
sistent with what we shall afterwards have to record, namely, 
that the ash of the finer flour — of which there is a greater 
proportion in the grain of the seasons of best maturation — 
contains more lime than that of the coarser and more branny 
portions of the grain. 

Lastly, in reference to this Summary Table, we would call 
attention to the mean composition of wheat-grain ash yielded 
by the twenty-six analyses given by Mr. Way, by the side of 
that of the twenty-three specimens grown at Rothamsted. 
Mr. Way's analyses, equally with our own, show that wheat- 
grain ash essentially consists of phosphates of potash, mag- 
nesia, and lime. He, however, if we exclude silica, gives 
higher percentages of base, and a lower one of acid, than our 
own analyses indicate. Mr. Ways 5 average amount of phos- 
phoric acid is indeed nearly five per cent, less in the ash than 
ours. His series, however, included many descriptions of 
wheat, and our own only one — the Old Red Lammas. In 
several of his cases, too, we observe that the percentage of 
this acid very closely approximates to our own average." 
23 ' 



266 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XI. 



GROWTH OF THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Having discussed the chemical doctrines of vegetable life, 
so far as the wheat plant is concerned, in our preceding re- 
marks, we will now proceed to describe the process of germin- 
ation, development, and maturation during, and by the agency 
of which, those inorganic elements, destined for the food of 
men and animals, after preparation by means of the plants, 
are collected and combined. It is the especial province of 
plants so to combine and arrange the inorganic elements of 
which all animal bodies are composed, as to fit them for recep- 
tion into, and assimilation in these organisms, and every mat- 
ter connected with such important functions can not fail to be 
an interesting subject for investigation. 

The ripe, well-formed, and fully developed wheat grain, 
magnified to six times its average size, is seen in figure 10. 
The appearance of such a grain is so fam- 
iliar as to require only a passing notice. 
At one end of the berry, which is some- 
what egg-shaped, with a longitudinal groove 
in one side, a number of short hairs or bris- 
tles are seen, and at the other, the scar or 
point at which the grain was attached to the 
parent stem. Near this point on the convex 
side of the grain, is a spot marking the 
position of the embryo or organs of germin- 
ation, or the germ itself, .known in common 
parlance as the " cliit.' n This germ spot may 
be studied by the aid of Fig. 10, which is a 
magnified view of a wheat grain with the bran removed from 
where it covers the germ externally, a marks the body of 




TERMINATION OF PLANTS. 2b7 

the grain where the greater portion of the starch or flour is 
deposited, h the edge of the outer covering of the grain, d the 
proper envelop of the germ, e c e is the germ, and as the 
use of this is a subject of interesting inquiry, we will dwell 
upon its form and office for a moment. The same principle 
which obtains in the germination of a grain of wheat obtains 
also in the germination of all other seeds, and the only dis- 
coverable difference between the germs of one plant or seed 
and those of another, is a slight difference of anatomical 
arrangement, which has given rise to the grand division of 
plants, by botanists, into monocotyledonous and dicotyledon- 
ous classes. 

The cotyledon is best studied perhaps in the bean or pump- 
kin, and is in the seeds of these and many other plants made 
up of the halves of the seeds which adhere to the plumule, or 
first sprout, which emerges from the ground in the form of 
thick, green, ovate leaves, and being two in number, they give 
origin to the name dicotyledon. The use of these cotyledons 
is to give nourishment to the developing germ until able to 
draw its food from the earth. Plants, among which is wheat, 
having no division of the seed into halves as the bean, acorn, 
etc., are styled monocotyledons, from this fact — but whether 
the cotyledons be single or double, it has physiologically the 
same purpose to accomplish, that is, supplying the germ, 
which represents in itself the yet to be perfect plan, with the 
nutrient materials stored away in the form of starch, gum, oil, 
etc. in the grain or seed, and upon the perfect performance of 
which function the health of the new plant mainly depends. 
The germ Fig. 10, e e e, representing the future plant, con- 
sists of three principal parts. First, the portion yet to be de- 
veloped as the plumule or ascending sprout c, b ; second, the 
part e e, from which the radicle or first rootlet is developed ; 
and third, a band bisecting the germ, which is the crown of 
the roots, or division line between the roots and stalk, and 
which in some piants represents the stem or trunk of the 
future tree. /, e, g, is that part which becomes developed as 



268 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



a root, first e, the radicle, which after a short life, having served 
its purpose as a root, is generally re-absorbed, being a rudi- 
mentary part and then /, g, the first two permanent roots spring 
forth, the whole presenting in a few days after exposure to 
the proper conditions the appearance indicated in Fig. 8. 

A grain of wheat being deposited in the earth, water is 
supplied to it from the soil, which it absorbs, and all the con- 
tents of the berry soften, swell and undergo certain changes, 
chemical and chemico -vital, which result in the process of 
germination, being begun and carried on. The germ describ- 
ed, Fig. 10, being supplied by moisture, calls into activity the 
life-forces which hitherto lay dormant. The starch, gluten, 
salts, etc., contained in the seed as a store of nutriment for 
the beginning plant, are softened, chemically changed, dissolved 
and fitted for absorption into it, and are taken up by it as 
required to complete its embryotic, so to say, growth. 

After a short time the developing germinal plant, and the 
parent grain assume the appearance presented in Fig. 8, in 

which a refers to the plumule, 
ascending axis, or first green 
leaf, h h 7i, to the origin of 
the primary and two second- 
ary radicles F E, C, E. The 
part of the grain marked B is 
that which contains the larger 
part of the starch and other 
food of the plant, while D is 
the part containing all that is 
absolutely necessary for ger- 
mination. C, E, the pri- 
Fig. 8. mary radicle is marked by 

several protuberances, o o o o called spongiohs, Fig. 
9, whose office it is to absorb water, and the materials 
dissolved in it from the earth, for the sustenance of the 
plant, and terminates in a like spongiole E, by the 
changes of and additions to which the root continually grows 




COMMENCEMENT OF TILLERING. 



269 



until maturity is reached. Along tlie course of the secondary 
roots F, E, terminating like the primary root, in a spongiole, 
are seen little branching rootlets e e e, each of which also 
terminates in a 



spongiole, Fig. 
9. A second 
plum ule , A, 
Fig. 8, stalls 
out from the 
base of the rad- 
icle and shows 
the commence- 
ment of that 
process known 
as spooling or 
tillering, which 
results in a vast 
multiplication 
of stems arising 
from one grain. 
This process FlG - 9 - 

does not take place, until the plant is firmly fixed in its place. 




At this 




stage, 



Fis. 8, the 



cc young plant begins to absorb 
from the earth the materials 
for further growth, and hence 
the important practical appli- 
Cj cation of the knowledge of 
1 "q the chemistry of the soils and 
plants growing upon them, to 
which we have adverted, that 
is to choose soils in which the 
necessary materials are found 
or to supply them if lacking 
for any given kind of vegeta- 
ble product. 



270 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




In Fig. 11 we have a largely mag- 
nified view of the summit of the plu- 
mule Fig. 8, a, which becomes devel- 
oped in the wheat into the first 
perfect leaf. This delicate point is 
made up of little cells flattened by 
pressure, and applied to each other 
in nearly parallel lines, and by the 
breaking down or absorption of the 
adjacent walls of these cells, at the 
sides which occupy the axis of length, 
and by means of further depositions 
and alterations, they form little ducts 
for the transmission of sap or the 
blood of the plant. 
After a certain time passed, from 

the deposit of the seed in the ground z 

varying with the depth at which it - 
jj was sown, the condition of the soil 
gaud air as to heat, moisture, etc., the 
— seed represented as it is sown, Fig. 
~ 10, and the same shown in the pro- 
cess of germination, Fig. 8, presents 
the appearance shown in Fig. 14 or 
Fig. 13. In Fig. 13 we have an ex- 
ample of wheat deposited at a prop- 
er depth, averaging about one inch 
and a half. It is vigorous and 
thrifty, and shows this in the perfec- 
tion of its roots and top. A, the 
stem, is now above abojce ground, 
surmounted by two 
leaves instead of the 
single plumule, which . 



riQ. 13. 

is now developed into the first perfect 
leaf which serves as an involucre to 




Pig. 14. 



PROCESS OF TILLERING. 



271 



the second, which has emerged from it as from a sheath, and 
where it at first replaced the first plumule of the germ. 
Within the convolutions 
of the base of this leaf 
we will hereafter find an- 
other, and thus from the 
center, springs forth each 
new leaf, and the part of 
the stock belonging to it 
forming a joint at each 
leaf, until at last the top 
joint or that bearing the 
head is developed. 



In Fig. 13, 



a a, are to 




be seen two new plu- 
mules, and these like the 
first one, become, when at 
a depth not exceeding one 
inch, new stalks, and are 
again succeeded by oth- 
ers, until a large number 
of stems, connected to- 
gether it is true, at the 
root, but capable of sepa- 
ration into independent 
stalks having their proper 
roots, are produced, and 
thus undergo the process 
of tillering or multiplica- 
tion of stems from one 
root, Fig. 15. This is a 
very important function 
for the production of 
cereals, and by means of carefully and frequently repeated >l 
divisions of the different stems to promote tillering to a great 
extent, over fifteen hundred grains have been obtained from a ' 



Fio. 15. 



272 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

single seed. It is to favor this process that drilling is used 
instead of broadcast sowing and harrowing, as the exact depth 
of deposit most favorable to this process differing somewhat 
in different soils, can be easily secured for every grain sown, 
while the harrow, covering the grain very unequally, gives it 
either too great or too shallow a depth, preventing in either 
case the accomplishment of this desirable object. The depth 
proper to secure this process is about two inches in light 
porous soil, and not more than one or one and a half inches in 

\ stiff clayey soil. 

V, The effect of too great a depth in sowing is shown in Fig. 
14. The stalk B. surmounted by its first two leaves is small 
and unthrifty as contrasted with a plant sown at proper depth, 
Fig. 13. The great distance which it was necessary for the 
plumule to traverse, before emerging into the air and sharing 
the vitalizing influence of the light has entirely exhausted the 
store of nutritious materials, furnished by the seed before it 
could attain sufficient development to be considered a healthy, 
vigorous plant, and therefore, its future growth is retarded, 
tillering, as seen in Fig. 15, is entirely prevented, and the 
stalk is more in danger of disease and accident and its loss in 
the field is irremediable. 

At a. Fig. 14, just below the surface of the earth, is seen a 
nodule or enlargement of the stalk, and here new roots are 
generally thrown out if the vital force of the plant is not too 
far spent in reaching the surface, and the sickly, puny root, 
which should have sustained it is lost, as it dies and rots. 
Nature is ever on the alert to preserve every one of her 
progeny, and in this instance endeavors to repair as far as pos- 
sible the evils resulting from ignorance or accident. 

During the early part of the growth of the wheat plant, or 

"" during the fall and early winter, the absorption of silica in the 
form of a soluble silicate of potassa, is principally effected, 
and is a matter of vast importance in the physiology of the 
plant, and it is, perhaps, owing principally to this fact that 
winter wheat generally succeeds better than spring wheat, 



HOW THE SILICA IS DEPOSITED. 



273 



which is not so favorably conditioned for absorbing this 
necessary constituent of the stalk, leaves and seeds, in all of 
which it is deposited during the last sixty days of growth, 
forming a large part of the thin pellicle or epidermis of all 
these parts, and greatly aids in protecting them from various 
accidents and diseases. 




Fig. 16. 

The manner in which this silica is deposited in the epider- 
mis of wheat is represented in Fig. 16, which is a largely 
magnified section of a wheat glume ; a a a, being thin scales 
of silica. 

Winter-killing, a subject of frequent complaint among 
agriculturists, is perhaps of next importance in considering 
the growth of wheat, and is caused in the manner described 
as follows: When wheat is too deeply sown, the roots are 
comparatively few, as mentioned when speaking of that sub- 
ject, and the plant is, consequently, more liable to perish 
than if it could afford, on account of a great number, the loss 
of a few roots. When the ground freezes during the winter, 
and particularly when it freezes and thaws many times, as is 
sometimes the case in Ohio, it becomes cleft at each freezing! 



274 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



and the ends of the roots extending across this cleft are torn 
asunder, and in this manner the means of sustenance are de- 
nied to the plant during the spring, and on account of this 
rupture of its roots, it either perishes entirely or only retains 
vitality enough to carry on a sickly, feeble, unprofitable 
development. 




Fig. 17. 

Fig. 17. Wheat plant in clay soil. 

a, b. Cracks in soil caused by drought. 
e e e. Roots raptured by the induration of the soil. 

Fig. 17 represents the cracking of the ground in stiff clay 
soil during drought; but may also serve to illustrate one of 
the modes in which frost operates to break and destroy the 
roots. The water from snows and rains during the winter, 
settles in and fills up the fissures as at a and b, the water then 
becomes ice, and in the process of freezing, sunders or breaks 
the roots by expansion. The water also finds its way into 



WINTER KILLING. 275 

lateral crevices, as from e e to e, and then, when freezing takes 
place, the plant is by this action not only thrown up, but the 
roots are severed. So long as the roots remain entire or un- 
broken the action of the frost does not injure, but the moment 
they are severed, their communication with the spongiole 
(Fig. 9) is interrupted, and although this interruption or 
breaking does not deprive them of vitality, it yet greatly re- 
tards the growth of the plant. If properly situated the 
parent plants put forth new roots from the terminals e e e, and 
if the spring is favorable, the plant produces at least half as 
much as if not winter-killed. But if the plant is thrown 
entirely out of the ground by the frost, it can not send forth 
new roots, and consequently dies. 

The most effectual mode of preventing this occurrence, so 
far as the skill of the husbandman is concerned, is to under- 
drain, in an effectual manner, all the spots where wheat has 
been observed to be winter-killed, and then to plant at a 
proper depth to favor the 
development of a large mass 
of roots, and also the pro- 
cess of tillering. This depth 
is undoubtedly most cer- 
tainly secured by using a 
properly constructed drill. 
If a grain be properly cov- 
ered, the crown of the roots Fig. is. . 
is well developed, as in Fig. 18, and the roots and rootlets are 
multiplied in number, and are nearer to the surface of the 
earth, and do not traverse so large a mass of soil downward, 
and are, therefore, proportionally less liable to rupture during 
heavy frosts, and can, at the same time, better spare the few 
which may be broken. By referring to works on the subject 
of draining, the reader will observe that properly constructed 
drains are also recommended as beneficial adjuvants in the 
prevention of winter-killing. 

Nature's preventive is an early and durable blanket of 




276 



THE WHEAT PL4NT. 



snow, and besides, the kind of soil has much to do in prevent- 
ing or causing winter-killing. But these natural accessory 
causes are not within the control of the farmer. 

When spring arrives, a new era in the growth of the wheat 
begins. During the fall and winter, it does not arrive at a point 
of development sufficiently advanced to shoot forth a stalk, but 
has been solely occupied in developing roots and leaves, and 
elaborating some of the materials, as silica, for future use. 

But as soon as the frost has left the ground, and the warmth 
of spring permits, a new impetus is given to the growth of the 
plant, — roots are prolonged in every direction, to gather ma- 
terials from the earth, — leaves expand and increase the power 
of the plant to effect those chemico-vital changes necessary to 
convert the inorganic elements and their compounds, which 
form its food, into its own tissues of growth and reproduction. 
Carbonic acid, water, ammonia, potash, lime, and the oxides 
of the necessary metals, are collected as dissolved in the water 
of the soil, by the spongioles of the roots 
and rootlets, and conveyed by means of 
little tubes or canals, such as mentioned 
when speaking of the plumule, Fig. 11, to 
the leaves, there to be exposed to the in- 
fluences of light, heat, and oxygen, and 
from these are returned and deposited in 
all parts of the plant, as its proper devel- 
frni °P men t requires. 

It may be well to mention, while pass- 
ing, that an idea very strongly advocated a few years since, 
and supported by seemingly conclusive experimental evidence, 
to-wit : that plants gathered the materials of their growth 
principally from the air, directly, and not from the ground, is 
a fallacy. Air holds very nearly the same relation to plants 
as it does toward animals, — that is, elements in it, combined 
or simple, are ultimately necessary for the subsistence of 
either organism, but except oxygen, all these elements must 
be in a state of combination before the animal can feed upon 




Fig. 19. 



STOMA OF THE LEAVES. 277 

them, and even the oxygen is required to be combined with 
carbon before the plant can use either as food. 

Ammonia, nitric acid, sulphureted hydrogen, carbonic acid, 
and water, are supplied, by the air in a great measure, for the 
growth of plants, but they are not absorbed directly from the 
air, and hence by the leaves, which are analogous in function 
to the lungs and kidneys of an animal, as was formerly sup- 
posed, but by the roots from the ground. 

These elements of agrial supply, must first, before being 
absorbed into the plant, come in contact with its roots, which 
they do by being dissolved in the water of rains, and thus 
carried into the earth. Some, it is true, as carbonic acid, 
may originate in the earth from the decomposition of vegeta- 
bles or minerals, but, wherever found, being heavier than air, 
it falls to the ground, and soaks into the earth, if properly 
porous, very readily, or it is carried in and mingled with 
water, by the rains, and thus the plant is reached from the air, 
first through the earth, by these materials. 

It is a general law of plants that, during the day-time, they 
exhale or give out oxygen gas, and at night exhale carbonic 
acid gas. In consequence of this fact, it has been assumed that 
the plant inhaled or absorbed all its carbonic acid gas through 
the stoma (a a a a, Fig. 19), or mouths of the leaf during the 
day-time, from the atmosphere and oxygen during the night. 
But this doctrine unfortunately is surrounded by too many 
difficulties and improbabilities. The atmosphere contains, 
according to the advocates of the "breathing" theory, about 
1.3000 of its quantity of carbonic acid gas; yet they as dog- 
matically assert that if the air contained 1.1000 part of its 
quantity of this gas, all animated nature would cease to exist. 
These statements are possibly correct, but then these same 
theorists assert that a bushel of charcoal produces 2500 gal- 
lons of carbonic acid gas, — that each adult person exhales 
about 140 gallons of this gas daily, and that about four per 
cent of all oxygen inspired is converted into carbonic acid 
gas. Now, supposing the atmosphere to be five miles high, 



278 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and all the sources of the production of carbonic acid gas 
estimated very moderately indeed, it will be found that suffi- 
cient carbonic acid gas is produced all the year round to keep 
the atmosphere in a very deleterious, if not absolutely fatal, 
condition, while vegetation or growth of plants does not con- 
tinue more than three or four months. 

From this statement the following inference is perfectly 
legitimate : Plants do not receive all their carbon through 
the leaves ; but obtain much of it from the soil. Limestone 
contains 44 per cent, of its weight of carbon. (Youmans!) 
The Plant does not inspire or absorb carbon during the day, 
then cease at night and inspire oxygen, while it at night ex- 
pires or gives out carbonic acid gas. It absorbs its gases from 
the soil ; the sunlight changes and fixes the carbonic acid as 
a portion of the body, or part of the plant, while the oxygen 
escapes ; at night the sun-rays no longer act as an exciting 
cause to arrest and consummate the fixation of carbon, and 
consequently both the carbon and oxygen escape together 
during the night ; but the first rays of the morning's sun 
again arrest the carbon, while the oxygen only escapes. 

Wheat is an endogenous plant, that is, one in which the 
materials of growth are not deposited as in an oak tree, in 
successive rings upon the outside, but the deposit is made in 
the center of the axis of growth, and the bulk of the plant is 
made up of the cells here formed, deposited, changed in place, 
toward the outside, and in character to agree with the object 
to be obtained. 

Arising from the center or axis of growth, then, corres- 
ponding with the root or base of the perfect leaf, each new 
leaf and joint of the stem grows upward rapidly after the 
spring is sufficiently advanced to afford heat and regular 
moisture. But if sown on a stiff clay, and the spring should 
be very dry, the soil will bake and crack apart, as at «, e, and 
b, e, Fig. 17, and where the roots are thus severed, the plant 
necessarily dies. Every succeeding joint and corresponding 
leaf is protected by those preceding, which form an involucre for 



GRAIN NOT PRODUCTIVE WITHOUT IMPREGNATION. 279 

it, until when the head begins its growth it is surrounded and 
protected by a number of leaves and leaf stems, which always 
surround their proper joint, and the shaft or stalk arising 
from it, for some distance upward. Within this involucre of 
leaves the head is formed, first by the deposition of materials 
to form the different parts of fructification, the glumes, or 
bracts, the stamens and pistils, and then the bran of the seed 
and the seed contents, successively. At first these parts are 
quite indistinct, being formed of delicate cells, deposited 
somewhat in the form of scales, but as growth proceeds they 
soon become distinct, — the glumes or chaff inclose the or- 
gans of fructification, consisting of the ovary, style, and 
stigma, which are the female organs of generation collectively 
designated as the pistil, and the stamen or male organ divided 
for description into filament, and anther, the latter of which is 
the essential organ, and at a proper time splits and emits a pow- 
der called pollen, which is the fructifying principle of plants. 

After the ovary is fully impregnated, then the deposit of 
the materials forming the body of the grain begins, and when 
completed the watery portions, which existed in the state 
known as "in the milk" because the starch is suspended in a 
milky solution, are then gradually absorbed, the grain ripens, 
dries, and is then fit for preservation or reproduction. 

Should, however, from any cause, the impregnation be pre- 
vented, then will the head be sterile, or the glumes will be 
filled with a black mass of powdery matter. In some cases 
ergot is produced. Some writers assert that when the impreg- 
nation fails smut is invariably produced. From the period 
of impregnation until the ripening of the berry, are many 
steps and liable to be interrupted by many causes, by which 
the incalculably important product, wheat, arrives at perfection, 
and notwithstanding the many dangers to which it is exposed, 
nature has so wisely fortified herself against these as to secure 
the continuance of this plant in spite of them all. Thus are 
all creatures directly and indirectly guarded, and the species 
almost certainly preserved. 



280 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XII. 

BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OP THE WHEAT PLANT. 

In the preceding chapters reference was frequently made 
to certain portions of the wheat plant, which, from the terms 
employed, may not have been obvious to the non-scientific 
reader. A brief description of the various portions of the 
plant will therefore not be irrelevant. 

In botanical language the head of wheat is called a spike ; 
a head of oats is called a 'panicle ; the pyramidal form of flow- 
ers like that of the Lilac, is called a thyrse ; a bunch of cur- 
rants, or wild cherries are called a raceme ; the hawthorn bears 
fruit in the form of a corymb ; the parsnip, caraway, etc., in 
the form of an umbel ; elder, dogwood, etc., in the form of a 
cyme; the Indian turnip and skunk cabbage in the form of a 
spadix; while the flowers of walnut, hickory, oak, birch, etc., 
are borne on catkins or aments. 

That which we in common language call a breast of wheat, 
is by botanists called a spikelet. That which farmers call 
bearded wheat, botanists call atoned wheat. The spikelets 
(whether awned or not) are generally three, although some- 
times five flowered. A (Fig. 20) represents a three flowered 
spikelet, and E (Fig. 21) a five flowered one ; but in almost all 
the five flowered varieties, two flowers (4 and 5) are sterile or 
barren, and in the three flowered ones the central flower (10) 
is barren. The spikelets are placed on alternate sides of the 
rachis (1, Fig. 20), so that the edges of the florets (5, 5, 10, 
Fig. 20) are toward the rachis. The rachis or shaft is jointed, 
and the spaces between the joints are termed the internodii — 
the spikelets rising one above another on each side of the 
rachis constitute the spike, ear, or head. 

The glumes {A 4 4, or E * *) are transverse, — that is, they 
are right and left — they are nearly equal and opposite, herba- 



ANATOMY OF THE WHEAT HEAD. 



281 



ceous and nerved, or have small nerve-like ribs. They are, in 
other words, the two lowermost chaff of each spikelet, and 




Fig. 20. 

correspond to the calyx of non-gramineous plants, while each 
of the florets or pala3 {A 5, 6, B A of 2) serves the purpose 
of a corolla or flower cup. The outer palse in bearded wheat 
is awned as at A 5 ; but in bald or smooth wheat the awns 
are wanting, as at A in No. 2, or the head of wheat in Fig. 20, 
or the breast e of Fig. 21. 
24 



282 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




The awns or beards are apparently smooth when passed 
through the fingers, the chaff end foremos^ which are found 
to be exceedingly rough when passed through with the point 
foremost, g (Fig. 21) represents a section of an awn magni- 
fied eight diameters ; from this it will be seen that it is well 

garnished with teeth or a saw-like edge. 
The shape of the chestnut is entirely de- 
pendent upon the place which it occupies 
in the hull, and it has one or two flat 
sides according to the place in which it 
grew — if in the center of the " hurr" it 
has two flat sides, or in case the two end 
ones were not impregnated, it is round ; 
but if it grew in either end then it in- 
variably has one convex and one plane 
or flat side. So with wheat ; the grain 
in the center of the spikelet or breast is 
always "plumper" than the ones on 
either side of it; thus /(Fig. 21) repre- 
sents the comparative size and shape of the grains in a three 
grained breast — the upper three figures showing consecutively 
the right-hand, central, and left-hand berries, with their em- 
bryos, while /represents the reverse side of the central grain. 
Some certain florets in each variety of wheat in general are 
fertile, while others are uniformly barren, 
and the aggregate inflorescence of the 
several varieties differ widely in the length 
and form of the rachis, the size, shape, 
and packing of the spike — the compara- 
tive length of the glumes, the number and 
fertility of the florets, and above all in the 
various properties and colors of the seeds. 
Fig. 22 represents a spikelet in bloom — 
with the anthers fully extended. The 
glumes (4) are generally about twice as long as they are wide, 
and are traversed by a mid-rib or nerve, appearing like a 



Fig. 21. 




Fig. 22. 



ANATOMY OF THE GLUME. 



283 



-j of Fig. 



raised line on the under side of the glume. N*o. 3 
20, is the profile of a glume. There is generally a smaller 
nerve or rib on each side of the mid-rib, more strongly 
marked at the base than at the apex of the glume. The 
tooth-like projection which we perceive more or less developed 
on the upper glumes of the blossom — these glumes are also 
more properly called palae — as at 6 of A, Fig. 20, are the in- 
dications only of an awn, which in wheat is wanting, yet is 
more or less fully developed in rye and barley. The glumes 
5, 6, or A, B, of No. 2, are termed the inferior and superior 
palae, exterior or interior palas, or lower and upper palao, while 
4 is termed the glume of the calyx. The exterior A of No. 
2 palaa generally partakes of the same shape of the glume of 
the calyx, but is rather longer; the interior one (i>), on the 
contrary, is cuticular, awn less, and two- 
nerved. Both of these nerves are promi- 
nent, and the cuticular part between 
them is folded simply to correspond with 
the cavity of the exterior glume, and is 
bent inward. 

Between the glume A, B } No. 2, or 5, 
6 of A t Fig. 20, are found the three an- 
thers, a, c c, Fig. 23, and the two feathery 
portions of the pistil e. The pistil is the 
female portion of the flower, and is situ- 
ated on the top of the ovule or young 
seed-grain d. These portions, namely, 
the pistils and stamens, constitute the 
flower or blossom of the wheat. The 
stamens consist of two parts — the fila- 
ments b b b, and the anthers a, c c. The 
filaments connect the anthers to the ex- 
terior of the ovule. The anthers contain the pollen grains, 
which contains the male fecundating fluid, principle or prop- 
erty. The color of anthers is a bright yellow, so also is that of 
the pollen grains themselves ; these grains are so small as to 




Fio. 23. 




284 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

be called a cktstf' and are not, perhaps, more than the one-ten- 
thousandth part of an inch in diameter. . Fig. 24, on this 
page, represents a portion of an anther highly magnified and 
divided transversely, showing the abundance and arrangement 
of the pollen grains, 

When the pollen grains are mature, the anthers protrude 
between the palas ^4, B, No. 2, but become ruptured at the 
end attached to the filament before being en- 
tirely extruded, so as to shed the pollen on 
the pistil e, before they leave the inner por- 
tion of the glume, No pollen which may be 
shed on the outside of the glume, is of any 
fig. 24. service in fecundating the ovule, because the 

palae A, B, No. 2, are so closely in contact that no pollen 
could, by any adventitious circumstances, find its way between 
them to the pistil. 

The pollen grain consists of an exceedingly thin pellicle or 
skin, enveloping a mass of transparent adhesive fluid. 
"Whether this fluid performs a function in the vegetable king- 
dom, similar to that performed in the animal kingdom by the 
seminal fluid, is not fully established, but that it is indispens- 
able in perfect fecundation is incontestably established. Many 
physiologists, however, are of opinion that the plant in the 
process of hybridization, whose ovule is impregnated by the 
pollen of another plant, becomes the father, while the one 
that furnished the pollen leaves the impress or characteristics 
of the mother on the hybrid. So long as this point remains 
unsettled, horticulturists can not labor as intelligently in 
their profession as they can when the proper function of the 
pollen shall have become fully known. 

"When the pollen is shed from the anther it falls upon the 
feathery portion of the pistil, c. Fig. 23, where it is retained by 
an adhesive fluid with which the entire pistil is overspread. 
Fig. 25 represents a portion of the pistil highly magnified ; a 
c are ducts or passages leading to the ovule. The pollen grains 
are by some inherent power attached to the orifice of one of 



ANATOMY OF THE PISTIL. 



285 



these ducts, as at d; finding the duct too small to admit of 
the passage of the grain in its globular form, the grain assumes 
an elongated form — being sometimes ten times the diame- 
ter in length. When it arrives at the termi- 
nation of the duct the pellicle or envelop dis- 
solves and the fluid mingles with a similarly 
appearing fluid in the ovule. As soon as the 
pistil and stamens have performed their repro- 
ductive function they wither and decay and can 
not be made to perform the function anew. 

Although it may be somewhat irrelevant in^ 
this place to contradict a very generally receiv- 
ed opinion, yet as every reader will have the 
description and statement of the functions of 
the different parts of the blossom fresh on his mind 
he will at once see the absurdity of the general opinion alluded 
to, namely : When wheat is in full bloom and is subjected to 
a heavy rain it is said that the rain knocks the bloom off and 
the spikelets are sterile in consequence. The truth is that 
no part of the blossom is at any time exposed other than the 
anthers, and as they have already shed their pollen on the 
pistil before they were extruded, and as the sides of the palae 
(A B. No. 2) which contain the young seed are in close con- 
tact so that no water can penetrate except that which finds its 
way through the body of the palae itself, it can not be that the 
loss of the anthers by the rain is the cause of sterility. 




Fig. 25. 



There are properly speaking two suites or kinds of root 
belonging to the wheat plant. Those which spring from the 
seed itself when sowed are termed seminal or seed roots.. 
These serve to elaborate nutriment for the plant until it has 
grown high enough to form a crown, joint or knot, just 
beneath the surface of the soil, as a (Fig. 14) in the annexed 
figure. As soon as this joint is formed the plant commences 
to tiller or stool, that is, it sends out a new suite of roots, and an 
additional number of stems. When the roots at a are sufli- 



286 



TUI-: WHEAT PLANT. 




Fig. 14. 



cicntly developed to furnish the parent 
and young plants with the requisite 
kind and amount of nutriment, then 
the original or seminal roots are ab- 
sorbed and disappear. This fact is 
denied by Mr. D. J. Browne of the 
Agricultural Department of the Pat- 
ent Office in his report for 1857, but we 
can not conceive how we possibly can 
be mistaken in our observations, be- 
cause we have examined the plant 
sown at all depths from one to seven 
inches, and have never found any 
_ tillers at a greater depth than from 
H one-half to three-fourths of an inch 
SF from the surface, although we have 
~ found seminal roots at the depth of 
IT five inches on the same plant which 
tillered at the depth of half an inch. 
This was uniformly the case in all our 
observations ; we were not led to expect 
to find tillers at any point except at 
the seminal roots, and to us at least 
the fact was new that the plant threw 
out two sets of roots; and for this 
reason we made extensive observations, 
because at first we supposed the coronal 
roots to be adventitious or accidental, 
and not the uniform law which we 
found it to be. In the spring time or 
even late in the fall when the plant 
has tillered, it presents the appearance 
represented in Fig. 15 — that is the 
multiplied stalks proceed from roots 
in no case exceeding an inch from the 
surface of the soil. The seminal 



REMARKABLE POWER TO TILLER. 



287 



roots entirely disappear after tillering has fairly commenced, 
and we are certain that the plant does at no time after tillers 
have been formed depend 
upon the seminal roots 
for existence. If it did, 
how will Mr. Brown ex- 
plain the fact that not 
unfrequently are the sem- 
inal roots severed by up- 
heaval caused by frost in 
winter ? Or how will he 
explain the following fact 
if the life of the plant 
depends on the seminal 
roots ? : 

In the " Philosophical 
Transactions " it is record- 
ed that Mr. C. Miller, of 
Cambridge, the son of the 
eminent Horticultu- 
rist, sowed, on the 2d of 
June, a few grains of 
common red wheat, one 
of the plants from which 
had tillered so much, that 
on the 8th of August he 
was enabled to divide it 
into eighteen plants, all 
of which were placed 
separately in the ground. 
In the course of Septem- 
ber and October so many 
had again multiplied their 
stalks, that the number of plants which were separately set 
out to stand the winter was sixty-seven. With the first growth 
of the spring the tillering again went forward, so that at the 




Fia. 15. 



288 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

end of March and beginning of April, a farther division was 
made, and the number of plants now amounted to 500. Mr. 
Miller expressed his opinion that before the season had too far 
advanced one other division might have been effected, when 
the number might have been at least quadrupled. The 500^ 
plants proved extremely vigorous, much more so than wheat 
under ordinary culture, so that the number of ears submitted 
to the sickle was 21,109, or more than forty to each of the 
divided plants ; in some instances there were one hundred ears 
upon one plant. The ears were remarkably fine, some being 
six or seven inches long and containing from sixty to seventy 
grains. The wheat, when separated from the straw, weighed 
forty-seven pounds and seven ounces, and measured three 
pecks and three quarters, the estimated number of grains 
being 576,840. Such an enormous increase is not of course 
attainable on any great scale, or by the common modes of 
culture ; but the experiment is of use as showing the vast 
power of increase with which the most valuable of vegetables 
is endowed, and which by judiciously varying the mode of 
tillage may possibly in time be brought into beneficial action. 

The divisions above referred to must have been made from 
the coronal roots — they could not possibly have been made 
from the seminal roots; because the seminal roots produce one 
stalk only — that the new stalks proceed from the coronal roots 
only must be evident to every one who has ever made any 
examination of the subject. The seminal roots in short can 
no more produce two or half a dozen stalks direct from them- 
selves, than two or half a dozen cows can produce one calf 
and each one have an equal share in the maternity. 

A writer in the (British) Farmer's Magazine insists that the 
tillers proceed from the seminal roots entirely, and says of 
the coronal roots that "so far from being an essential appen- 
dage to the plant are entirely accidental in their formation ! " 
But in the course of his article he says " the establishment 
of this fact (that the plant is nourished entirely by the semi- 
nal roots) greatly strengthens the argument in favor of deep 



PROCESS OF TILLERING. 



289 



sowing, by which the chance of the formation of a joint 
below the surface is rendered more certain, which also insures 
the formation of coronal roots." Query. — If the coronal 
roots are " accidental " and subserve no purpose in elaborating 
nutriment for the plant, why is it desirable to produce them? 

Nature makes no mistakes ; and has in the wheat plant 
provided the coronal roots as a means of multiplying the 
plant, in order that the 
grains may be produced in 
the greater abundance. Fig* 
18 represents the tillers of a 
mature stalk and I will ven- 
ture the assertion without 
fear of successful contra- 
diction that no one ever fig. is. 
found such a union of stalks at a depth of five or six inches 
from the surface of the ground during the life-time of the 
plant — neither have any roots ever been found above the place 
from whence these united stalks proceed. 
25 




290 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

WHEAT REGIONS OF THE WORLD. 

Notwithstanding cereals other than wheat are in general 
use as a staple article of food among the laboring classes in 
Europe, Asia and South America, yet considerable wheat is 
grown in all these countries. Wheat is extensively grown in 
New South Wales ; at the Cape of Good Hope, is grown to 
some extent in the African Barbary States and Egypt, in 
Asia Minor, in Europe generally, in Arabia, Persia, etc. It 
is also grown in Chili, La Plata, New Grenada, Ecuador, and 
other South American States. 

Summer and winter varieties are grown in almost all these 
regions; but both the polar and equatorial limits necessarily 
differ somewhat, although this difference is not definitely as- 
certained, because travelers, and even botanists, very seldom 
allude to the distinction. In Scotland wheat is cultivated 
north of Inverness in Latitude 58°, in Norway, at Drontheim, 
latitude 6-1°, in Sweden to latitude G2°, in Western Russia in 
the environs of St. Petersburg to latitude 60° 15', while the 
polar limits in Central Russia are at 59°. Wheat is here 
almost an exclusive cultivation, especially in a zone which is 
limited between the latitude of Tchernigov, latitude 51°, and 
Ecatherinoslav, in latitude 48°. 

In central and western Europe wheat is cultivated chiefly 
in the zone between latitude 36° and 50° ; further north rye 
is generally preferred. South of this zone, new combinations 
of heat, with humidity and the addition of many other cul- 
tures, very sensibly diminish the importance of the wheat crop. 

In Chili and the United States of Rio de la Plata, the cul- 
tivation of wheat is very productive. On the plateau of South- 



EUROPEAN WIIEAT REGION. 291 

\ 

em Peru, Meyen saw most luxurious crops of wheat at a 
hight of 8,500 feet, and at the foot of the volcano of Are- 
quipa at a hight of 10, GOO feet. Near the Lake Titicaca, 
which is situated at an elevation of 12,846 feet, and where a 
climate of constant spring prevails, wheat very seldom ripens, 
in consequence of the coldness of the summer nights. 

It is not known with any degree of certainty how far north 
on the American continent wheat may be grown. At Cumber- 
land House, which is situated in latitude 54° N., long. 102° 
20' W., the officers of the Hudson's Bay Company have estab- 
lished a prosperous agriculture. Capt. Franklin found fields 
of barley, wheat, and even Indian corn, growing there, not- 
withstanding the extraordinary severity of the winter. The 
polar limits of the cultivation of wheat are the more import- 
ant, since, during a part of their course, they coincide with 
the northern limits of those fruit trees which yield cider, and 
in some parts also with the limit of the oak, agriculture and 
forests both undergo a sudden and remarkable change of ap- 
pearance on approaching the isothermal line, or line of equal 
summer temperature of 57° 21 '. 

The physical condition of the polar limits of wheat in 
countries where the cultivation has been carried to its utmost 
extent is as follows : 

Mean Temperature in Fahrenheit. 
Countries. Latitude. Year. Winter. Summer. 

Scotland (Inverness) 58° 46° 35° 57° 

Norway (Drontheim) 64° 40° 25° 59° 

Sweden , 62° 40° 25° 59° 

West Russia (St. Petersburg) ... 60° 15 / 38° 16° 61° 

This table shows how little influence winter cold has in 
arresting the progress of agriculture toward the north; and 
this is confirmed in the interior of Russia, where Moscow is 
much within the limits of wheat, although its mean temper- 
ature is, according to Schouw, 53° 2' '. 

The isothermal curve of 57° 2', which appears to be the 
minimum temperature requisite for the cultivation of wheat, 
passes, in North America,, through the uninhabited regions of 



> 



292 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Canada. The isothermal curve (or line of places having an 
equal winter temperature) of 68° or 69°, which appears to be 
the extreme limit of the possible cultivation of wheat, toward 
the equator oscillates between latitude 20° and 23°. 

In Europe the cultivation of wheat is carried to a greater 
extent than in any other quarter of the globe. Annexed is a 
table showing the average product for a series of years in 
European countries. Of Russia and Turkey the amount ex- 
ported only could be ascertained ; but we are in possession of 
no facts by which the amount produced could be determined 
with any degree of certainty : — 

Wheat Produced in Continental Europe. 

Austrian Empire 27,735,568 

British " 145,800,000 

France 191,422,248 

Russia (exported) 18,921,776 

Belgium 13,349,160 

Denmark 2,992,748 

Holland 3,597,888 

Portugal 5,499,280 

Sardinia 19,975,000 

Spain 46,914,800 

Sweden and Norway 1,100,784 

Turkey (exported) 4,628,720 

Two Sicilies 64,000,000 

Canada (North America) 60,470,184 

The following table, compiled from authentic sources, ex- 
hibits the amount that Great Britain imported from other 
countries during a period of ten years, ending in 1852. From 
this table will be seen how very little wheat is imported from 
the United States by England ; the average amount, as shown 
by the above table, is 5,154,245 bushels annually. This is 
less, by more than half a million of bushels, than one-fourth 
of the amount that Ohio annually produced, from 1850 to 
1857, inclusive : — 



BRITISH IMPORTS OF WIIEAT. 



293 




294 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Wheat Trade of the Elbe, etc. — Next to Dantzic, Hamburg 
is, perhaps, the greatest grain market in the North of Europe, 
being a depot for large quantities of Baltic corn, and for the 
produce of the extensive countries traversed by the Elbe. 
The exports of wheat from Hamburg amounted, at an aver- 
age of the eleven years ending with 1841, to 210,871 quarters 
a year. The price of wheat is frequently less in Hamburg 
than in Dantzic; but this lowness of • price is altogether 
ascribable to the inferiority of the Holstein and Hanover 
wheats, which are generally met with in great abundance in 
Hamburg. Wheat from the upper Elbe, is of a better quality. 
Bohemian wheat is occasionally forwarded by the river to 
Hamburg; but the charges attending its conveyance from 
Prague amounts to full 15s. a quarter, and prevents its being 
sent down, except when the price is comparatively high. In 
1841, the shipments of wheat from Hamburg amounted to 
507,400 quarters, of which 460,900 were for England. 

French Wheat Trade. — It appears from the account given 
by the Marquis Grarnier, in the last edition of his translation 
of the Wealth of Nations, that the price of the hectolitre of 
wheat at the market of Paris, amounted, at an average of the 
nineteen years, beginning with 1801 and 1819, to 20 francs 
53 cent., which is equal to 30 francs 80 cent, the septier ; or, 
taking the exchange at 25 francs, to 45s. 6d the quarter. 
Count Chaptal, in his valuable work, Sur V Industre Franrol$e ) 
published in 1819, estimates the ordinary average price of 
wheat throughout France at 18 francs the hectolitre, or 42s. 
lOd. the quarter. The various expenses attending the impor- 
tation of a quarter of French wheat into London, may be 
taken at a medium of 6s. the quarter. France, however, has 
very little surplus produce to dispose of; so that it would be 
impossible for her to export any considerable quantity without 
occasioning a great advance of price. 

The mean of the different estimates framed by Vauban, 
Quesnay, Expilly, Lavoisier, and Arthur Young, gives 61,- 
519,672 septiers, or 32,810,000 quarters, as the total average 



WHEAT IN FRANCE. 295 

growth of the different kinds of grain in France (Penchet 
kStatistique Edcmentain). We, however, take occasion to 
observe that there can not be a doubt that this estimate 
was a great deal too low : and the more careful trans- 
lations of the late French staticians fully confirm this 
remark. 

The annual produce of the harvest of France was lately 
(1843) estimated, from returns obtained under official author- 
ity, at 69,558,000 hectolitres of wheat, and 112,958,000 ditto 
of other sorts of grain ; making in all 182,517,000 hectolitres, 
or 02,740,000 imperial quarters. Of this quantity it is sup- 
posed that about sixteen per cent, is consumed as seed, nine- 
teen per cent, in the feeding of different species of animals, 
and two per cent, in distilleries and breweries. 

The foreign grain trade of France was regulated, till within 
these few years, by a law which forbade exportation, except when 
the home prices were below certain limits, and which restrained 
and absolutely forbade importation, except when they were 
above certain other limits. The prices regulating importations 
and exportations differed in the different districts into which 
the kingdom was divided. Latterly, however, importation has 
been at all times allowed under graduated duties, which, like 
those recently existing in England, become prohibitory when 
the prices sink to a certain level. The frontier departments 
are divided into four separate districts, the prices in each dis- 
trict governing the duties on importation into it, so that it 
sometimes happens that grain warehoused in a particular port, 
where it is not admissible except under a high duty, has been 
carried to another port in another district, and admitted at a 
low duty. An official announcement is issued on the last day 
of each month, of what the duties are to be in each district 
during the succeeding month. 

Spanish Grain Trade. — The exportation of grain from Spain 
was formerly prohibited under the severest penalties. But in 
1820, grain and flour were both allowed to be freely exported, 
and in 1823, this privilege was extended to all productions, 



296 THE WHEAT PLANT, 

(frutos) the growth of the soil. There is now, in fact, no 
obstacle whatever, except the expense of carriage, to the con- 
veyance of grain to the seaports, and to the foreigner. 

Owing, however, to the grain-growing provinces being prin- 
cipally situated in the interior, and to the extreme badness of 
the roads, which renders carriage to the coast both expensive 
and difficult, the exports are comparatively trifling ; this diffi- 
culty of carriage frequently gives rise to very great differences 
of prices at places in all parts of the country, only a few 
leagues distant. 

Grain Trade of Odessa. — Odessa, on the Black Sea, is the 
only port in Southern Europe from which any considerable 
quantity of grain is exported. We believe, indeed, that the 
fertility of the soil in its vicinity, has been much exaggerated ; 
but the wheat shipped at Odessa is principally brought from 
Volhynia and the Polish provinces to the south of Cracow, the 
supplies of which are susceptible of an indefinite increase. Ow- 
ing to the cataracts in the Dnieper, and the Dniester having a 
great number of shallows, most part of the grain brought to 
Odessa comes by land-carriage. The carts with grain are 
often in parties of 150 ; the oxen are pastured during the 
night, and they take advantage of the period when the peas- 
antry are not occupied with the harvest, so that the charge, on 
account of conveyance, is comparatively trifling. 

Both soft and hard wheat are exported from Odessa ; but 
the former, which is by far the most abundant, is only brought 
to England. Supposing British wheat to sell at about GOs., 
Odessa wheat in good order would not be worth more than 
52s. in the London market ; but it is a curious fact, that in 
the Mediterranean the estimation in which they are held is 
quite the reverse; at Malta, Marseilles, Leghorn, etc., Odessa 
wheat fetches a decidedly higher price than British wheat. 
The hard wheat brought from the Black Sea comes princi- 
pally from Taganrog. It is a very fine species of grain ; it 
is full ten per cent, heavier than British wheat, and has less 
than half the bran. It is used in Italy for making maccaroni, 



WHEAT REGION IN THE UNITED STATES. 297 

vermicelli, and all things of that sort ; little of it has found 
its way to England. 

The voyage from Odessa to Britain is of uncertain duration, 
but generally very long. It is essential to the importation of 
wheat in good condition, that it should be made during the 
winter months. When the voyage is made in summer, unless 
the wheat is very superior, and be shipped in exceedingly 
good order, it is almost sure to heat, and has sometimes, in- 
deed, been injured to such a degree as to require to be dug 
from the hold with pickaxes. Unless, therefore, means be 
devised for lessening the risk of damage during the voyage, 
there is little reason to think that Odessa wheat will ever be 
very largely imported into Britain. The entire expense of 
importing a quarter of wheat from Odessa to London, may be 
estimated at from 16s. to 18s. The exports of wheat from 
Odessa, and other ports on the Black Sea, to Constantinople, 
the Levant, Italy, the south of France, etc., have latterly 
been very large indeed. In 1846, the exports from Odessa 
only amounted to 1,276,502 quarters, and in 1847 to 2,016,- 
692 ditto ; the latter being, we believe, the largest exportation 
that ever took place in a single year from any single port 
Owing to the scarcity in England, about 400,000 quarters of 
the above quantity were shipped for that country, but the 
speculation entailed a heavy loss on the importer. The price 
free on board at Odessa considerably exceeded 40s. a quarter. 

Encyclopedia Br Ulan ica . 

WHEAT REGION IN THE UNITED STATES. 

A failure of the wheat crop in England affects the ex- 
changes of the whole world ; and a scarcity in France gener- 
ally brings about a revolution. 

In a country so extensive as ours, we need not fear a fail- 
ure ; but the boast so often made, that " we can feed the 
world from our surplus," is vain boasting. Beyond feeding 
our own great and constantly increasing population, we shall 



298 THE WHEAT PLANT 

not, generally, have any great surplus. We too often think 
that all our wild land is wheat land. This is far from being 
true. The land properly adapted to wheat, is limited to ten 
degrees of latitude, and twenty of longitude — embracing only 
about half of the States. Outside of this belt, wheat is 
raised, but it is generally a poor article of spring wheat, no 
better than northern rye. 

To show that our wheat region is not capable of producing 
so,great a surplus as we imagine, we have only to look at facts 
instead of fancies. We may take, perhaps, as the average 
crop of wheat produced, that of 1848 — which was 126,000,000 
bushels — and our population 22.000,000, which gives a trifle 
over five and a half bushels to each inhabitant. Now the 
consumption of wheat in England is 166,000,000 bushels an- 
nually, which gives six bushels to each inhabitant — about 
half a bushel more to each person than we should have if we 
consumed our whole crop. It is true we have a surplus that 
will average ten or twelve million bushels a year for export, 
but that is produced by the substitution of corn for wheat, 
as an article of bread. Cut off this substitute and we 
should be our own consumers of all our wheat and 
there would be a scarcity besides. As our exports have 
scarcely, if ever exceeded twelve million bushels, we may 
safely take that as the average surplus. Besides guarding 
against a partial failure of a crop of corn or wheat, we have 
also to look to the constant flow of population to our shores 
from abroad, as well as to the natural increase at home. The 
foreign tide setting to our shores may be put down at 400,000 
annually : all of whom must be fed, for the first year at least. 
But it is estimated that our population will double in twenty- 
five years ; and if our wheat-growing sections are fixed, and 
stationary in quantity, we must increase the ratio of wheat 
to the acre, or our surplus will, by the next census, be meas- 
ured by the algebraic quantity of Minus. 

The following tables of wheat grown in each State, were 
compiled from the census returns of 1840 and 1850 : 



AMOUNT OF WHEAT GROWN IN EACH STATE. 299 

1840. 1850. 

Alabama 838,52 294,044 

Arkansas 105,878 199,639 

California 17,228 

Columbia,District of. 12,147 17,370 

Connecticut 87,009 41,992 

Delaware 316,165 482,511 

Florida 412 1,027 

Georgia 1,801,830 1,088,534 

Illinois 2,335,393 9,414,575 

Indiana 4,049,375 6.214,854 

Iowa 154,693 1,530,581 

Kentucky , 4,803,152 2,142,822 

Louisiana 60 417 

Maine 848,166 296,259 

Maryland 3,345,783 4,494,680 

Massachusetts ■. 157,923 31,211 

Michigan 2,157,108 4,925,889 

Mississippi 196,626 137,990 

Missouri 1,037.366 2,981,652 

New Hampshire 422,124 185,658 

New Jersey , . 774,203 1,601,190 

New York 12,286,418 13,121,498 

North Carolina 1,960,855 2,130,102 

OHIO 16,571,661 *14,487,351 

Pennsylvania 13,213,077 15,367,691 

Rhode Island 3,098 49 

South Carolina 968,354 1,066,277 

Tennessee 4,569,692 1,619,386 

Texas 000 41,929 

Vermont 495,800 535,956 

Virginia 10,109,716 11,212,615 

Wisconsin 212,116 4,286,231 

Minnesota 1 401 

New Mexico 196,516 

Oregon.. 211,943 

Utah 107,702 



Total 88,513,270 100,585,844 



*Crop of 1849— the crop of 1850 was 28,769,139. 



300 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Our Agriculturists do not appear to be sufficiently aware 
of the facts — or at least manifest great indifference with re- 
spect to them if they are — namely : the limited area of wheat 
land and the necessity of properly managing it so as to produce 
the greatest possible amount of wheat with the least possible 
exhaustion of the soil — let us examine the different sections 
of our country, and see the extent of those adapted to the rais- 
ing of wheat. 

The State governments of New England have, by the offer 
of premiums, encouraged their farmers in the production of 
wheat; but though much labor may produce small crops, we 
believe all will agree that New England is not, and can not 
be, a wheat-producing section. The States south of North 
Carolina, or say latitude 33°, never have, and never will be 
wheat-growing States. Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri 
are best adapted to corn, and wheat can never be regarded as 
the great staple of either. Cotton is the staple of Tennessee ; 
hemp and tobacco of Kentucky and Missouri. Kentucky and 
Missouri, too, are unsurpassed as grazing sections, and for 
raising stock ; and there is no reason to suppose that they 
will change the agriculture best suited to their condition, for 
wheat culture. 

Indiana, Illinois, and " The Far West," are painted to us as 
the great wheat regions, to which we are to look for the wheat 
to supply the world. The common idea is, that this whole 
region is peculiarly adapted to wheat ; but this, like many 
other popular theories, may not be strictly correct. 

The prairie sod — the virgin soil of the West — when first 
broken up, generally produces good wheat. So it will be in 
New England. But virgin soil will not always last — like 
virgin beauty it becomes old and fades with age. The prairie 
sod consists of friable mold, and when, by cultivation, and 
exposure to the atmosphere, it becomes completely pulverized, 
and then covered with surface water, as much of it frequently 
is, the frost will heave the wheat out of the ground, and it is 
winter-killed. If the plants are so fortunate as to escape 



DETERIORATION OP WHEAT SOILS. 301 

winter-killing, this friable mold, when dry, is an almost im- 
palpable powder, and the high prairie winds will blow it from 
the roots of the plants, exposing them to the dry and parching 
rays of the sun, and what the winter has spared the summer 
kills. These effects will not always follow, but the older these 
prairie lands become the more subject will they be to them. 

It is a melancholy truth, and one that reflects much on the 
skill and foresight of American farmers, that, while the wheat 
crop of England has increased at least fifty per cent, in the 
last century, that of the United States has fallen off in nearly 
the same proportion. A century ago, New England, Delaware, 
and Virginia raised wheat as an ordinary crop ; now a wheat- 
field is a rarity in these States, and they may be considered as 
no longer wheat-producing regions. Portions of New York, 
that formerly produced thirty bushels to the acre, now seldom 
average over eight bushels ; and Ohio, new as she is, with 
her virgin soil, does not average over thirteen bushels to the 
acre. 

If we go on as we have for the past century, from bad to 
worse in our tillage, the lands in Ohio, in half a century from 
this time, will not produce wheat enough to supply our own 
wants. It is less than that time since Vermont was a large 
wheat-exporting State ; now she does not export a bushel, 
but imports at lea3t two-thirds of all the flour consumed in 
that State. Instead of increasing the productiveness of our 
wheat land, as is done in England, our wheat region is dimin- 
ished more than one-half, and the productive quality of what 
is still used has diminished in equal proportion. 

This is a practical, matter-of-fact view of the case, and one 
that addresses itself seriously to the common sense of the 
farmer and national economist. 

To look at facts : Illinois, high as she stands in reputation, 
as a wheat-growing State, is behind cotton-growing Tennessee, 
and hemp and tobacco-growing Kentucky, in the production 
of wheat. Illinois produces less than seven bushels of wheat 
to each inhabitant, while Tennessee produces nine bushels, 



302 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and Kentucky produces seven bushels and a half to each 
inhabitant. 

Illinois no doubt feels highly flattered at the account of 
the fertility of her soil as stated by James Caird, a member 
of the British Parliament, who journeyed through that State 
in the autumn of 1858, and published a work (in May, 1859) 
on " Peairie Farming in the West." In that work he 
says of Illinois : 

" The characteristic soil of this State is that of the prairies, 
of which it chiefly consists, and to which alone my attention 
was directed. They comprise many million acres of land, 
more or less undulating — in their natural state covered with 
grass, which is green and succulent in May, June, and July, 
shoots up in autumn from three to six feet in hight. 

" How the prairie formation originated it is unnecessary 
here to inquire. It is sufficient to know that we have a soil 
evidently of great natural fertility, which, for thousands of 
years, has been bearing annual crops of grass, the ashes or 
decayed stems of which have been all that time adding to the 
original fertility of the soil. So long back as we have any 
knowledge of the country, it had been the custom of the In- 
dians to set fire to the prairie grass in autumn, after frost set 
in, the fire spreading with wonderful rapidity, covering vast 
districts of country, and filling the atmosphere for weeks with 
smoke. In the course of ages a soil, somewhat resembling an 
ash-heap, must have been thus gradually created, and it is no 
wonder that it should be declared to be inexhaustible in fer- 
tility. In Europe such tracts of fertile country as the plain 
of Lombardy, are known to have yielded crops for more than 
two thousand years without intermission, and yet no one says 
that the soil is exhausted. Here we have a tract naturally as 
rich, and with the addition of its own crops rotting upon its 
surface, and adding to its stores of fertility all that time. It 
need occasion no surprise, therefore, to be told of twenty or 
thirty crops of Indian corn being taken in succession from 



SOILS OF ILLINOIS. . 303 

the same land, without manure, every crop, good or better, 
according to the nature of the season. 

" Externally the prairie soil appears to be a rich black mold 
with sufficient sand to render it friable, the surface varying in 
depth from twelve inches to several feet, lying on a rich but 
not stiff yellow subsoil, below which there is generally 'blue 
clay. This drift surface lies on rocks consisting of shales, 
sandstones, and limestones, belonging to the coal measures. 

" Its chemical composition has been ascertained for me by 
Prof. Voelcker, consulting chemist to the Royal Agricultural 
Society of England, to whom I sent four samples of prairie 
soil for analysis, brought by me from different and distant 
points of the lands belonging to the Illinois Central Railway 
Company. They bear out completely the high character for fer- 
tility which practice and experience had already proved these 
soils to possess. The most noticeable feature in the analysis, 
as it appears to me, is the very large quantity of the nitrogen 
which each of the soils contains, nearly twice as much as the 
most fertile soils of Britain. In each case, taking the soil at 
an average depth of ten inches, an acre of these prairies will 
contain upward of three tons of nitrogen, and as a heavy 
crop of wheat with its straw contains about fifty-two pounds 
of nitrogen, there is thus a natural store of ammonia in this 
soil sufficient for more than a hundred wheat crops. In Dr. 
Voelcker's words, 'it is the largest amount of nitrogen, and 
the beautiful state of division, that impart a peculiar character 
to these soils, and distinguish them so favorably. They are 
soils upon which I imagine flax could be grown in perfec- 
tion, supposing the climate to be otherwise favorable. I have 
never hefqre analysed soils which contained so much nitrogen, nor 
do I find any soils richer in nitrogen than these? " 

If the nitrogen doctrine were the correct one— that is, that 
nitrogen in the soil is the only indispensable element to insure 
abundant crops of wheat, then we should expect these prairie 
soils to be the most prolific ones in the world. But there are 



304 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

other elements as well as nitrogen indispensably necessary, of 
which more mention in detail will be made in a subsequent 
chapter. 

To avoid the evils of winter-killing in the culture of wheat, 
in Illinois, they have resorted to the culture of spring wheat, 
sown on the land where the fall-sowed crop had been winter- 
killed. This increases the quantity at the expense of the 
quality, for every one who has observed the quotations of 
wheat in New York, must have observed the depreciation in 
Illinois wheat. Even the spring wheat, as such, is of an in- 
different quality. But the honorable member of Parliament 
himself is of opinion that these prairie soils are not adapted 
to wheat, although "rich, in nitrogen." He says, in continu- 
ation : 

" Though these soils are so rich in nitrogen, they seem to be 
too loose for wheat, which is undoubtedly a precarious crop 
upon them. The open prairie country is so wind-swept in 
winter that the snow seldom lies long to any depth, and the 
young wheat is thus left unprotected to the frost. Should it 
escape that, it is liable to be thrown out by the rapid changes 
of weather in spring — and if it is fortunate enough to escape 
both, it is sometimes destroyed, as it was last year, by its en- 
ormously rapid growth in forcing summer weather, growing, 
as it does, almost on a muck heap. In such a season as the 
last, the prairie wheat crops of Illinois were injured precisely 
in the same manner as our own in this country sometimes 
suffer from a too heavy dose of guano, in a warm, moist sum- 
mer. The growth is too rapid, the vesicles of the stem burst, 
and the ear does not fill. I can not doubt that Prof. Voelcker 
indicates the proper remedy for this in the application of 
lime, in which these soils are comparatively deficient. It 
would consolidate the soil, render the wheat less liable to be 
hoven, and help to strengthen the straw, and render the 
growth less rank. There is abundance of lime in the country, 
so that the remedy is at hand, and will undoubtedly be applied 
under a more scientific system of agriculture. 



DEFICIENCIES IN WESTERN SOILS. 305 

"Autumn wheat is the most valuable corn, but it is also 
the most difficult to be grown, for it has to withstand the un- 
protected severity of the winter. The earlier it is sown after 
the 1st of September, the more likely is it to succeed, and it 
is generally successful when sown on the first and second 
crops of a newly-plowed prairie which had been broken in 
proper season. If any of it should have been destroyed by 
frost, the ground is sown in spring with spring wheat, and this 
seldom fails. 

" The geological survey of Iowa and Wisconsin, carried on by 
order of Congress, gives the reasons why those Western States 
can not be permanently first-rate wheat lands. The report 
states that ' a striking feature in the Iowa and Wisconsin 
soils (and the same remark applies to the Illinois prairies) is 
the entire absence, in most specimens, of clay, and the large 
proportion of silex.' " 

Now silex, or sand, and calcareous earth, and humus, are 
necessary for wheat ; but it also requires a considerable mix- 
ture of clay. 

An agricultural writer, the late Mr. Coleman, states that 
u The soil 'preferred for wheat, in England, is a strong soil, ibitH 
a large proportion of clay." The absence of this clay is 
what renders the prairie soil so friable, and is the great 
desideratum in the soil to make it a permanently productive 
wheat soil. 

Henry L. Ellsworth, of Indiana, an extensive farmer, and 
able agricultural writer, says : " After a full consideration of 
the subject, I am satisfied that stock raising, at the West, is 
much more profitable than raising grain. The profits of wheat 
appear well in expectation, on paper, but the prospect is blasted 
by a severe winter — appearance of insects — bad weather in 
harvesting, in threshing, or transporting to market — or, last, 
a fluctuation in the market itself." 

Solon Robinson, a prominent agricultural writer, says : w In 
southern Indiana, Illinois, all of Kentucky, Tennessee, and 
northern Missouri, it [wheat] is affected by the rust. It is 
26 



306 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the most precarious crop in the West, and altogether unsafe 
for the farmer to rely on." 

These parts form the belt of ten degrees of latitude, and 
twenty degrees of longitude, as the wheat-growing section of 
the United States. Much of this section, even, is now, by 
continued cropping, exhausted and unproductive. Maryland, 
Virginia, and Delaware, are worn out, and although naturally 
adapted to wheat growing, must remain unproductive until 
restored by nature, or a kind of culture different from that 
furnished by slave labor. 

The natural, and permanent wheat region, lies between lati- 
tude 33° and 43° North. Wheat can be produced North and 
South of this belt, but cotton, sugar, and tobacco will ever be 
more profitable South, — and even a part of the territory within 
these bounds is better adapted to cotton, tobacco, and hemp, 
than it is to wheat>. A part of it is exhausted ; and a part of 
it, for want of clay in* the soil, will, by cultivation, become 
friable — a black mud that will freeze out the plants in winter, 
and an impalpable dust that will blow away and leave the roots 
bare in the summer. 

This wheat section embraces Ohio, the south parts of Michi- 
gan and New York, the whole of Pennsylvania, Maryland, 
Virginia, and Delaware ; and in these States we find where is 
raised, or has been, the greatest wheat production. Ohio 
stands at the head of all the wheat-growing States, in the 
aggregate of her production. Her crop in 1850, was twenty- 
eight million bushels, being nearly sixteen and a half bushels 
to each inhabitant. The geological survey of the State gives 
the reason, and confirms the statement, that " a large mixture 
of clay in the soil is necessary to the perfect growth of wheat ," 
and that the absence of it, from the soil of the prairies of the 
West, would prevent them from ever becoming permanently 
good wheat-producing sections. 

Thus, the reports of the geological survey of Ohio shows 
the soil to be "clayey," "clayey loam," and "clay sub-soil," 
and it produces sixteen and a half bushels to each inhabitant, 



OHIO WHEAT SOIL. 307 

while Indiana, with a richer soil, produces only eight and a 
half bushels, and Illinois, with a still richer soil, produces 
only seven bushels to each inhabitant. Virginia, Maryland, 
and Delaware, as well as New York, were formerly great wheat- 
producing sections. But many parts of New York, that for- 
merly produced twenty-five bushels to the acre, do not now 
average over five bushels ; and many parts of Maryland, Vir- 
ginia, and Delaware, that formerly produced abundantly, will 
not now pay the cost of cultivation. Exhaustion is written 
all over them, in language too plain to be misunderstood. 

Ohio has reached her maximum of wheat production, and, 
if not retrograding, is at least stationary. Thirteen bushels 
to the acre, may be set down as an average production, and 
this average must continue to grow rapidly less, till, like the 
exhausted lands of Virginia, her soil will not produce enough 
to support the cultivator, unless an improved system of hus- 
bandry is introduced to increase its fertility. One great 
source of deterioration in exhausting our soils, has been in 
the manufacture of potash, and the export of it to foreign 
countries, or to our manufactories. In this way our soil has 
been robbed of an ingredient, without which no plant can 
mature, and no cereal grain form. As our forests have dis- 
appeared, this source of deterioration must be cut off, but 
a serious injury has been inflicted, which nothing can cure but 
the re-furnishing of the potash to the soil. How it can be 
done, is the great inquiry for our farmers. 

The export of our flour has been another source of exhaus- 
tion to the soil, in taking away from it the phosphate of lime 
that is necessary to give plumpness to the kernel. 

This exhaustion can be more easily remedied by the appli- 
cation of bone dust. For many years the English farmers 
have carried on a large traffic in old bones, paying five dollars 
a ton for them. This has stimulated many to gather them 
up, and even rob the battle-fields of Europe of the bones of 
their brave defenders, to enrich the wheat fields of England. 
By this course, the fields of England have been made more 



308 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

productive, while the countries from which the bones are 
taken have been permanently injured by their loss. 

The English, too, have sent to every island of South Amer- 
ica to procure nifre, in the form of guano, to fertilize their 
fields, while the Americans not only import little or none, but 
negligently waste that which nature forces on them. 

The idea of skinning the soil of our wheat-growing sections, 
with a view of abandoning them soon and going west to pro- 
cure new and fertile wheat land, must itself be abandoned, as 
we are on the western verge of the permanently good wheat 
producing section. 

Our only resource now is to preserve our wheat lands where 
they are not exhausted, and to restore them where they are. 
Under judicious and scientific tillage, the lands of England, 
that have been under cultivation for hundreds of years, now 
produce twenty-five bushels to the acre. This is done by a 
liberal use of lime, plaster, clover, and a judicious rotation 
of crops. In wheat-raising, this rotation is clover and corn. 
Peas, beans, turnips, beets, and carrots, all furnish a good 
rotation, and furnish good food for sheep, which are good on 
wheat land. In fact the culture of wheat and raising of sheep 
should go together. The rotating crops furnish food for the 
sheep, and the sheep furnish the best of manure for wheat 
land. All the manure derived from the sheep should be care- 
fully preserved for enriching their land. It is highly concen- 
trated, and prepares the land for a generous crop of wheat at 
a small expense. The manuring agent consumes the crop 
that gives the land rest from wheat culture, and prepares the 
soil for another crop of wheat. 

In order that the capacity of Ohio for wheat-growing, as 
well as other crops, may be more fully understood, the follow- 
ing table, exhibiting the entire amount of land owned by 
individuals in each county, as well as the quantity and quality 
of each description of land — that is, the amount of plow land, 
meadow land and forests in each county, have been compiled 
with great care and labor from authentic sources : — 



; 



AMOUNT OF ARABLE, PASTURE AND WOODLAND. 



309 



COUNTIES. 

1853. 



Adams 

Allen 

Ashland .... 
Ashtabula .. 

Athens 

Auglaize .... 

Belmont 

Brown 

Butler 

Carroll 

Champaign . 

Clark 

Clermont .... 

Clinton 

Columbiana. 
Coshocton .. 
Crawford .... 
Cuyahoga ... 

Darke 

Defiance .... 
Delaware .... 

Erie 

Fairfield .... 

Fayette 

Franklin .... 

Fulton 

Gallia 

Geauga 

Greene 

Guernsey .... 
Hamilton ... 

Hancock 

Hardin ...... 

Harrison .... 

Henry 

Highland.... 
Hocking .... 

Holmes 

Huron 

Jackson .... 
Jefferson .... 
Knox 



Acres of 
Land. 



288,466 
241,702 
267,319 
442,663 
306,099 
238,997 
333,013 
311,354 
292,191 
250,492 
270,029 
248,668 
280,460 
258,520 
337,728 
350,586 
253,304 
279,339 
371,053 
241,058 
283,925 
156,388 
317,407 
252,180 
334,383 
250.959 
276,312 
255,730 
256,095 
321,862 
250,121 
333,595 
292,768 
253,858 
208,133 
338,391 
247.510 
264,945 
313.450 
235,102 
257,117 
390,058 



Valuation 
of Land. 



DESCRIPTION AND AMOUNT OF 
TAXABLE LANDS IN 1853, 



Arable 

or plow 

Land. 



$2,624,798 
2,023,144 
4,159,982 
4,631,133 
1,870,575 
1,898,999 
7,166,284 
4,947,102 

10,782.939 
3,653,662 
6,104,044 
5,457,477 
5,544,614 
4,749,394 
6,415,022 
4,320,281 
4,041,481 
9,927.903 
4,211,858 
1,179,693 
4,108,632 
3,997,976 
7,654,679 
5,140,980 

10,130,934 
482,502 
1,834,777 
3,771,921 
7,321,109 
3,195,611 

19,446,700 
3,239,681 
2,068,679 
4,418,617 

5,627,606 
1,697,503 
3,601,373 
6,363,938 

4, 487*, 03 8 
5.274,320 



Acre? 



Meadow 

or 
pasture 
Laud. 



98,542 

57,447 

136,319 

33,926 

51,883 

41,176 

142,195 

105,183 

154,985 

150,378 

102,761 

101,546 

73,454 
145,264 
167,120 

126,234 
39,375 
97,721 
27,643 
76,058 
53,674 

171,827 
58,898 

113,963 
44,667 
64,033 
21,929 

107,705 

132,489 

116,369 
77,366 
36.055 

100,143 
12,151 

144,479 
71,069 

144,154 
61,977 

1*30,208 
145,786 



Acres. 

~ 28~949~ 

7,723 

26,134 

185,749 
49.618 
10,244 
54,964 
40,452 
30.50-3 
15,088 
55,125 
48,342 

59,978 
58,992 
10,900 
12,530 
125,592 
22,469 

5,522 
51,179 
45J99 
19,808 
62,278 
56,213 

5,434 
30,686 
143,444 
34,389 
38,860 
45,629 
24,265 
12.208 
59,817 

3,275 
33,209 
13,506 
25,507 
96,189 

19,933 
39,570 



Unculti- 
vated or 
wood 
Land. 



Acres. 

160,975 

170,538 
104,866 
222,988 
204,59 s 
187,577 
135,854 
159,819 
100,671 

85,026 
112,143 

98,780 

125,088 
133,473 
109,500 
114,535 
114,371 
250,863 
207,893 
150,688 

56,915 
125,772 
131,004 
164,207 
200,848 
181,592 

90,357 
115,255 
150,513 

88,123 
231,964 
244,455 

93,898 
191,687 
100,703 
162,971 

95,224 
155,284 

106,976 
131,729 



310 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



COUNTIES. 

1853. 



Lake 

Lawrence .. 

Licking 

Logan 

Lorain 

Lucas 

Madison 

Mahoning .. 

Marion 

Medina 

Meigs 

Mercer 

Miami 

Monroe 

Montgomery 

Morgan 

Morrow .... 
Muskingum 

Noble 

Ottawa 

Paulding .... 

Perry 

Pickaway ... 

Pike 

Portage 

Preble 

Putnam 

Richland .... 

Ross 

Sandusky ... 

Scioto 

Seneca 

Shelby 

Stark 

Summit 

Trumbull.... 
Tuscarawas 

Union 

Van Wert .., 

Vinton , 

Warren 

Washington 



Acres of 
Land. 



144,687 
239,916 
429,619 
292,320 
305,828 
200,482 
283,612 
265,264 
251,602 
265,439 
260,416 
270,113 
254,142 
284,976 
286,713 
259,636 
251,517 
419,134 
254,926 
155,642 
135,159 
256,713 
311,059 
191,143 
315,987 
268,255 
244,544 
312,724 
392,896 
255,399 
260.931 
344J817 
241,784 
357,725 
261,417 
397,204 
356,124 
269,471 
233,291 
241,038 
252,947 
376,920 



Valuation 
of Land. 



DESCRIPTION AND AMOUNT OF 
TAXABLE LANDS IN 1853. 



3,086,138 

8,857,016 
3,993,012 
4,941,555 
1,692,137 
4,366,904 
6,361,049 
4,034,286 
5,713,239 
2,128,169 

6,364,833 
2,329,345 
9,620,173 
3,057,304 
3,979,957 
8,177,284 
2,377,206 
960,929 
496,245 
2,951,909 
7.054,457 
1,368,072 
6,550,636 
5,691,715 
1,178,617 
4,370,029 
6,972,811 
2,181,382 
1,831,572 
5,413,939 
2,942,967 
7,690,689 
6,288,573 
6,073,040 
5,091,135 
2,800,935 
1,032,488 
1,398,923 
6,946,711 
3,088,805 



Arable 

or plow 

Land. 



Acres. 



33,002 
27,723 
195,872 
72,329 
34,347 
25,547 
38,823 
76,874 
51,488 
94,694 
61,473 

121, 9 7 8 

119,166 

162,172 

98,266 

93,185 

214,920 

7*,235 

8,623 

6,024 

104,032 

100,956 

42,633 

81,013 

142,234 

26,119 

148,593 

153,016 

82,848 

46,559 

144,940 

64,065 

216,757 

116,663 

56,587 

181,391 

39,938 

19,219 

35,409 

113,492 

61,648 



Meadow 

or 

pasture 

Land. 



Acres. 

60^940 

4,963 

52,029 

39,884 

129,342 
12,901 

120,659 

92,290 

72,134 

93,905 

9,403 

11,442 

9,236 
20,485 
25,737 
40,135 
14,610 
51,816 

2,767 

1,886 

50,796 

66,879 

23,934 

132,070 

4,401 
10,103 
38,958 
51,941 
29,500 
20,060 
28,233 
11,995 
26,423 
62,726 
182,942 
21,075 
44,422 

3,285 
28,256 
38,552 
61.427 



Unculti- 
vated or 
wood 
Land. 



Acres. 



50,745 
158,509 
181,718 
180,107 
142,139 
162,023 
124,070 

96,100 
127,980 

76,840 
189; 540 

120,722 
166,574 
104,050 
133,598 
118,197 
189,604 
124,875 
144,247 
127,749 
101,885 
143,224 
124,576 
102,904 
123,619 
208,322 
125,173 
187,98lt 
163,051 
194,212 
171,644 
165,724 
114,544 
82,028 
155,717 
153,658 
185,111 
1,353 
177,373 
100,903 
253,445 



WHEAT. 



311 





Acres of 
Land. 


Valuation 
of Land. 


DESCRIPTION AND AMOUNT OF 
TAXABLE LANDS IN 1853. 


COUNTIES. 

1853. 


Arable 

or plow 

Land. 


Meadow 

or 
pasture 
Land. 


Unculti- 
vated or 
wood 
Land. 




Acres. 


Acres. 


Acres. 


Wayne 


343,089 
260,228 
347,086 
254,124 


6,018,145 
1,072,204 
1,957,675 
2,645,608 


169.785 
02.555 
34,686 
45,498 


22,030 
1,220 
8,734 

48,621 


151,274 




I'M ..452 


Wood 


802,001 




254,125 


Total 


24,811,455 


382,725,323 













The Western Reserve, embracing a tract of about three 
millions eight hundred thousand acres, is in general better 
adapted to grazing and dairying than to the growth of cereals ; 
consequently we do not find a solitary county within the origi- 
nal limits of the Reserve, which, in 1856, produced one hun- 
dred thousand bushels of wheat, nor with the exception of 
Erie and Huron counties, that has, during the same period, 
produced half a million bushels of corn. 

But the cereals are by no means neglected on the Reserve ; 
Geauga county producing in 185G the least of any of the 
Reserve counties ; it then produced 26,426 bushels of wheat, 
and 126,259 bushels of corn. 

The year 1856 may, perhaps, be considered a year of rather 
less than average productiveness, so far as cereals are concerned. 
Taking the products of 1856 as a basis, the estimates will be 
within the truth, which, after all, is perhaps the safest course to 
be pursued. In 1856 Butler was the only county in the State 
that produced more than 600,000 bushels of wheat; Montgom- 
ery the only one that produced over 500,000, and under 600,000 ; 
Greene, Stark and Preble each over 400,000, and under 500,000. 
In 1850 Stark produced over 1,000,000 bushels. 

The most important crop in the State is the wheat crop ; the 
extent of its culture is indicated in the following exhibit com- 
piled from authentic sources : 



312 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



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314 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 













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BUSHELS OF WHEAT GATHERED IN OHIO. 



319 



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320 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The crop of 1857 was greater in area and more prolific than 
that of the preceding year. From the preceding statistical 
table, it will be seen that the wheat crop has gradually been 
decreasing, not only in the area devoted to it, but in the quan- 
tity produced per acre. The crop of 1850 was sown on 
1,658,106 acres, yielding upward of seventeen bushels per 
acre, on an average, throughout the State. In 1855, there 
were more than 250,000 acres less in wheat, producing less 
than fourteen bushels per acre. In 1854, the average pro- 
duction was less than eight and a half bushels per acre, owing 
to the depredations committed by the red weevil, or midge 
(Cecidomyia tritici) in some portions of the State, and to 
freezing out, or winter-killing in other portions. The next 
year, 1855) however, almost 70,000 acres less (than in 1854) 
produced about seven and a half million bushels more of wheat. 

If the wheat cultivators of Ohio had practiced a general 
system of underdraining their clayey soils, and had thoroughly 
understood the natural history of the midge, a loss of nearly 
ten million bushels of wheat in 1854 could have been avoided. 
Owing to the depredations of the midge and other insects, 
and owing, also, to "winter-killing," or "freezing out," the 
farmers of Ohio have lost nearly twenty million bushels of 
wheat during the five years last past. From 1850 to 1853, 
both inclusive, the crops averaged 14.6 bushels per acre ; the 
crop of 1854 then should have been 21,548,651 bushels, instead 
of which, it was 11,819,110 bushels only, being a decrease 
from the average aggregate of 9,729,541. The crop of 1856 
was less than the average from 1850 to 1853 by 6,247,357; 
the losses attributable to destructive insects, want of under- 
draining, etc., may be stated as follows : 

1853 3,640,348 bushels. 

1854 9,729,541 

1856 6,247,357 " 

Total 19,617,246 

Or about 14 per cent, of the entire amount produced from 
1850 to 1856, both inclusive, or 30 per cent, of the amount 
produced during the four years from 1853 to 1856. 



WHEAT DISTRICT CHANGING. 



321 



There is no industrial pursuit in the State other than that 
of agriculture which could sustain such extensive losses with- 
out seriously embarrassing, not only those immediately con- 
cerned, but the entire industrial community. 

There appears to be a gradual change taking place in the 
locality of the wheat region of Ohio. From the completion 
of the Ohio canal wheat has been the great staple of export 
in the following counties, viz., Belmont, Coshocton, Mus- 
kingum, Fairfield, Guernsey, Jefferson, Harrison, Holmes, 
Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne. 

Of all these counties, Stark appears to be the only one which 
retains its former position as a wheat-growing county — all the 
others having greatly degenerated in this respect; while on 
the other hand, the great corn counties of the Miami and Sci- 
oto vallies have taken the position formerly occupied by them. 

The counties of Butler, Warren, Preble, Clermont, Hamil- 
ton, Darke, Brown, Highland, Boss, Pickaway and Franklin 
raised more wheat in 1857 than in 1850, which was the year 
of the largest crop, and more than was ever raised in one year 
by these counties. These counties lying in the southern half 
of the State seem to suffer much less from the ravages of in- 
sects ; and thus their crops correspond more nearly to the num- 
ber of acres planted. The relative amount of wheat raised 
in these counties in 1850, 1855 and 1857 is thus expressed : 



Counties. 


1850. 


1855. 


1857. 


Brown 


360,093 
529,390 


317,400 
447,813 

378,928 
370,478 
159,133 
444^172 
265,760 
356,764 
429,681 
438,440 
338,574 


479,882 


Butler 


789 569 




557,757 






495,212 






380,224 
766 571 


Highland 


495,392 
294,162 
338,829 
471,605 
359,046 
447,042 




443 641 


Preble 


531,442 
670 484 




666,000 
603 095 










3,947,143 


6,373,877 



322 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



The following were the products of wheat in the same num- 
ber of counties, in what was called the wheat region : 



Counties. 



Belmont 

Coshocton .. 
Fairfield .... 
Guernsey.... 
Jefl'erson .... 
Muskingum 
Harrison .... 

Holmes 

Stark 

Tuscarawas. 
Wayne 



Aggregate 7,581,757 



1850. 



667,311 
862,809 
690,089 
564,787 
616,180 

1,003,096 
532,778 
640,459 

1,071,177 
883,071 



1855. 



555,548 
184,367 
403,808 
293.613 
280,398 
482,042 
224,610 
132,161 
923,102 
489,238 
426,746 



4,395,633 



1857. 



403,566 
182,552 
582,137 
176,483 
205,987 
324,011 
190,666 
309,300 
997,790 
390,435 
650,280 



4,413,207 



These tables are very significant. In eleven counties in the 
southern part of the State, the wheat crop of 1857 was 
2,426,734 bushels greater than in 1855. In eleven counties 
of what is called the u Wheat Region," the reduction is 
3,118,550 bushels since 1850. In fact, a close analysis shows 
that almost the entire reduction in the wheat crop of Ohio is 
in a few counties only. The doctrine of a rotation of crops — 
or at least of not raising wheat as a continual crop, appears 
to be very clearly indicated from the above tables and state- 
ment. 

Plow deep, then ; bring up the phosphates from below, and 
then apply your manure. Soils must be plowed deep to pro- 
duce good wheat — first, to get the phosphates, and, secondly, 
to give the roots of the wheat plants a chance to run deep. 
One acre plowed twelve inches deep will produce more wheat 
than four acres plowed six inches deep. 

Again we say — plow deep — save all your manure, and use 
it freely ; apply your lime, clover, and plaster ; rotate your 
crops ; and instead of thirteen bushels to the acre being an 
average crop of wheat, you will just as easily get an average 
of twenty-five. Turn your attention to renovating your lands, 



DIMINUTION OF THE WHEAT DISTRICT. .323 

instead of dreaming of the fertile West, and make Ohio what 
she was intended to be, the granary of the Union. Unless 
our farmers turn their attention, and very soon too, to the 
renovation of their wheat lands, even Ohio will soon be among 
the non-producing wheat lands. That portion of Canada, which 
is included in the wheat region, is no longer profitably culti- 
vated with wheat, and has fallen off, in wheat production, 
from 22,981,244 bushels to 942,835 bushels in a year. This 
falling off of over twenty-two millions of bushels of wheat in 
the annual crop was gradual, but took place between 1827 and 
1844. This has curtailed the product of the crop in the 
wheat-growing regions immensely, and Canada may be left out 
of the wheat region. 

Wheat requires " a large mixture of clay in the soil for its 
perfect growth, for want of which the territory west of Ohio 
can never be a permanent wheat-growing region, and Vir- 
ginia, Maryland, and Delaware, and most of New England, 
are exhausted by long continued cropping without renovation. 
It will be seen, then, that the wheat region is narrowed down 
to very confined limits, and, what is more lamentable, these 
limits are becoming less productive. It is on this account 
that we call attention to this all-important subject. Unless 
our farmers are roused up to this subject, the small remaining 
wheat region will be so nominally only ; or, like Illinois, must 
soon be turned to the production of spring Theafc. 

In a work called "American Husbandry," published in 
England in 1775, the writer says: "Wheat, in many parts of 
the province of New York, yields a larger produce than is 
common in England. Upon good lands about Albany, where 
the climate is the coldest in the country, they sow two bushels 
and better to an acre, and reap from twenty to forty. The 
latter quantity is not often had, but from twenty to thirty 
bushels are common, and with such bad husbandry as would 
not yield the like in England, and much less in Scotland." 
Such was the productiveness of the wheat lands of New York 
eighty years ago. 



324 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

In 1845, the average per acre of that same wheat land, in 
Albany county, was only seven and a half bushels ; in Dutch- 
ess county, only five bushels ; Columbia county, six bushels ; 
Rensselaer, eight bushels ; and West Chester, seven bushels 
per acre. In northern Ohio we believe we may safely place 
the average product of wheat at thirteen bushels per acre. 
Now, after a cultivation of about half a century, our yield of 
wheat has decreased about one-half per acre. The process of 
diminution is still going on, and unless soon arrested by the 
application of proper manures, and a better system of tillage, 
our average product, like those parts of New York to which 
we have referred, will soon be between five and eight bushels 
per acre. 

In England, where the land has been in cultivation for 
centuries, the average yield is thirty-six bushels per acre ; in 
Scotland, thirty bushels ; and in England crops have been 
raised as high as eighty-eight bushels to the acre. 

Now it may be laid down as an axiom that, climate and 
local circumstances being the same, what one soil will pro- 
duce, another, by scientific cultivation, may be made to pro- 
duce ; and that the farmer, from a like amount of skill and 
labor in the cultivation of the soil, may anticipate the same 
results that have attended like efforts in other countries. If 
they pursue the exhausting process that has impoverished Vir- 
ginia and some other States, they will reap an abundant crop 
of poverty and exhaustion. The work is going on rapidly. 
The estimated loss, by exhaustion, in the United States, is, 
annually, $30,000,000. This is equivalent to a loss of 
$500,000,000 capital, at six per cent. If, by scientific culti- 
vation and manuring, our farmers will arrest this system of 
exhaustion, they will restore this capital ; and these lands 
that now produce from five to thirteen bushels of wheat to an 
acre, can be made to produce as they do in England — twenty, 
forty and eighty bushels. 

As we have so long looked at the vast West as an inex- 
haustible wheat region, it is hard to bring ourselves to a 



THE WEST NOT A WHEAT REGION. 325 

belief that it is not such, and still more so to believe that it 
is mostly a desert, incapable of producing anything, much 
less' good wheat crops. That our farmers may know that 
what we say is literally true, we quote from Professor Henry, 
secretary of the Smithsonian Institute. He says : 

" We are nearer the confines of the healthy expansion of 
our agricultural operations over new ground, than those who 
have not paid definite attention to the subject could readily 
imagine. The whole space of the West, between the 98th 
meridian and the Rocky Mountains, denominated the great 
American Plains, is a barren waste, over which the eye may 
roam to the extent of the visible horizon, with scarcely an 
object to break the monotony. From the Rocky Mountains 
to the Pacific, with the exception of the rich but narrow belt 
along the ocean, the country may also be considered, in com- 
parison with other portions of the United States, a wilderness, 
uufitted for the use of the husbandman. 

" In traversing this region, whole days are frequently passed, 
without meeting a rivulet, or stream of water, to slake the 
thirst of the weary traveler. Between the parallels of 32° 
and 33°, occurs the great Colorado desert, extending to the 
river of the same name, which empties into the Gulf of Cali- 
fornia. The entire district is bare of soil and vegetation, 
except a few varieties of Cactus. Over the greater portion 
of the northern part of Sonora, and the southern part of 
New Mexico, sterility reigns supreme. 

" We have stated that the entire region west of the 98th 
degree of west longitude, with the exception of a small por- 
tion of western Texas and the narrow border along the 
Pacific, is a country'of comparatively little value to the agri- 
culturist — and this line, which passes southward from Lake 
Winnepeg to the Gulf of Mexico, will divide the whole sur- 
face of the United States in two nearly equal parts." 

It will thus be seen that comparatively all the wheat region 
is in the eastern half of the United States ; that all west of 
longitude 98°,- which is a line from the west side of Lake 



32C THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Winnepeg to the west end of the Gulf of Mexico, may be set 
down not only as a non-wheat-producing region, but also as 
mostly an unproductive desert. 

In this manner we" see that " one-half of all the territory of 
the United States " is unproductive. Of the balance, Mary- 
land, "Virginia, Delaware, and New England may be said to be 
exhausted — much of New York nearly so. Tennessee is de- 
voted to cotton, Kentucky to tobacco, and Missouri to hemp, 
narrowing down the area of the wheat region to a compar- 
atively small territory. 

Of this small territory, which we have designated as the 
wheat region, Ohio may be said to be the western verge of the 
real vtheatproducing section. As this is contrary to the views 
of most people, who think the rich prairies of Illinois are 
great wheat-producing regions, we will give an extract from 
" Emery's Journal of Agriculture" published at Chicago, the 
great wheat market of Illinois. 

"South of [Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, and Michigan], 
the want of the snow coming to protect the young plants 
from the almost constant freezing and thawing of winter, and 
drying winds of March, make it, in most seasons, a very 
uncertain crop. We have known good crops of winter wheat 
on sod land, in the district indicated, but these are exceptions 
to the general rule ; nor do we believe that winter wheat, on an 
average, has ever paid the expense of its culture in the section 
now noticed. From the fact that its culture in that section is 
generally abandoned, and spring wheat largely cultivated in 
its place, we think the question is fully settled." 

This authority, we think, fully sustains our position, that* 
Ohio is the most westwardly State in the wheat-producing 
region. Indiana and Illinois are better adapted to other .crops, 
or to spring wheat, than to the choice winter wheat of Ohio, 
Pennsylvania, and western New York. This narrows down 
the wheat region to a small territory, and instead of the vain 
boast that we can feed the world from our surplus wheat, indi- 
cates that we must husband our resources, and stop the dete- 



OHIO THE CENTER OF THE WHEAT REGION. 327 

notation of our soil by the liberal application of manure and 
better tillage, or we shall soon be importers of wheat instead 
of exporters, The most desirable portions of our territory 
have changed owners, and now belong to individuals instead 
of the government. If these are exhausted the like can not 
be again purchased. 

Our farmers, then, must look to it. They must preserve 
those wheat lands that are not exhausted, and renovate those 
that are, or we shall soon be out of the pale of the wheat- 
producing section, though in the natural wheat region. The 
tide of population that is moving westward must soon stop, as 
they will reach the verge of not only the wheat region, but 
of the agricultural region. It must soon return eastward in 
search of the wheat-producing region ; and to enable them to 
find it a different system of tillage and manuring must be 
pursued. 

The following statement will, to say the least, be a matter 
of interest and for future reference. Therefore, we have chosen 
it as an appropriate conclusion of this chapter. 



328 



THE WHEAT I'L^NT. 



STATEMENT 

Showing the Annual Average Export Price of Flour at New 
York from 1800 till June 30, 1855 ; also, The Annual 
Average Price of Flour in the Cities of Boston, New YorJc, 
Philadelphia, Baltimore, New Orleans, and St. Louis, from 
1800 till June 30, 1855.' 



1800 
1801 
1802 
1803 
1804 
1805 
1806 
1807 
1808 
1809 
1810 
1811 
1812 
1813 
1814 
1815 
1816 
1817 
1818 
1819 
1820 
1821 
1822 
1823 
1824 
1825 
1826 
1827 
1828 
1829 
1830 
1831 
1832 
1833 



X 
o 


td 

o 

c->- 

o 
H 


5) 

CD 




$10.00 
13.00 


$11.00 
12.10 


9.00 


8.17 


7.00 


7.55 


7.75 


8.97 


13.00 


11.25 


7.50 


8.25 


8.25 


7.73 


6.00 


6.25 


7.50 


7.63 


8.25 


9.42 


10.50 


10.42 


10.75 


10.90 


13.00 


14.67 


u;so 


14.57 


9.25 


8.95 


7.37 


9.40 


14.75 


12.27 


10.25 


10.50 


8.00 


7.70 


5.37 


5.25 


4.25 


4.42 


7.00 


6.94 


7.75 


7.34 


6.62 


. 6.07 


5.37 


5.57 


5.25 


5.24 


,8.00 


5.64 


5.50 


6.14 


5.00 


6.81 


7.25 


5.26 


5 62 


6.05 


5.87 


6.29 


5.50 


6.11 



o 



7? 



% 9.38 
10.14 
6.19 
6.01 
7.15 
9.59 
7.13 
6.76 
5.15 
6.79 
8.77 
9.05 
9.08 
7.76 
7.76 
8.17 
9.34 
11.72 
9.42 
6.79 
4.81 
4.85 
6.39 
6.93 
5.93 
5.19 
5.00 
5.14 
5.50 
6.54 
5.03 
5.84 
5.87 
5.70 



pa* 
Pu 



$ 9.75 

10.85 
6.91 
6.75 
7.81 

10.15 
7.15 
7.10 
5.59 
6.43 
9.87 

10.40 
9.95 
9.29 
7.67 

■ 8.68 
9.75 

12.12 
9.85 
7.19 
4.94 
4.92 
6.48 
6.90 
5.62 
5.00 
4.69 
5.27 
5.20 
6.25 
4.83 
5.*2 
5.62 
' 5.85 



c^ 



$11.42 
11.42 
7.00 
6.50 
7.33 
12.08 
7.33 
7.50 
5.75 
6.50 
9.40 
10.67 
10.12 
10.17 
8.50 
7.02 
8.67 
10.31 
9.59 
6.56 
4.65 
4.64 
6.36 
6.89 
5.54 
4.88 
4.78 
5.15 
5.48 
6.37 
4.86 
5.61 
5.79 
5.69 



25 

3 



$13.50 
9.00 
9.00 
9.30 
12.50 
10.83 
9.62 
6.20 
6.28 
5.75 
6.68 
6.25 
4.91 
4.49 
5.12 
5.36 
7.20 
4.98 
5.47 
6-84 
5.23, 



TABULAR STATEMENT OF EXPORTS. 



329 



(0 



1834 
1835 
1836 
1837 
1838 
1839 
1840 
1841 
1842 
1843 
1844 
1845 
1846 
1847 
1848 
1849 
1850 
1851 
1852 
1853 
1854 
1855 



Export Price. 


w 

o 

GO 
O 




New York.... 


$ 5.50 
6.00 


$ 5.42 
6:42 


$5.07 
6.00 


> 7.50 


8.50 


7.78 


10.25 


10.18 


9.69 


9.50 


8.25 


8.02 


6.75 


7.20 


7.40 


5.37 


■ 5.51 


5.17 


5.20 


5.77 


5.39 


6.00 


5.67 


5.67 


4.50 


4.87 


5.07 


4.75 


5.13 


4.61 


4.51 


5.32 


5.00 


5.18 


5.53 


5.19 


5.95 


7.17 


6.80 


6.22 


6.43 


5.71 


5.35 


6.00 


4.96 


5.00 


6.00 


4.86 


4.77 


5.25 


4.19 


4.24 


5.20 


4.96 


5.60 


6.27 


5.51 


7.88 


9.25 


8.02 


10.10 


10.25 


9.06 



— 



9 



bo 

9 



&5.21 

5.75 
7.44 

9.75 
7.81 
6.89 
5.22 
5.34 
5.47 
4.60 
4.34 
4.69 
4.79 
6.02 
5.67 
4.84 
4.97 
4.38 
4.23 
5.47 
8.14 
9.62 



$4.99 
5.84 
9.92 
9.43 
7.84 
6.65 
5.00 
5.31 
5.20 
4.36 
4.31 
4.63 
4.53 
6.21 
5.52 
4.83 
4.89 
4.18 
4.26 
5.39 
8.13 
9.57 



as 


CQ 

e-t- 


CD 




3 


fc-< 




O 


o 


p. 


<-i 


t-»* 






CD 




P 




B 




OS 





?5.19 
6.35 
8.55 
9.10 
8.67 
6.57 
4.93 
5.33 
4.54 
4.18 
4.44 
4.83 
4.38 
5.54 
4.76 
4.61 
5.31 
4.00 
4.10 
5.48 
7.60 
9.36 



$4.50 
6.25 
8.00 
9.12 
7.37 
7.19 
4.93 
4.75 
4.56 
3.75 
4.50 
4.93 
4.50 
4.93 
5.25 
5.43 
6.25 
4.88 
5.23 
5.08 
6.09 
7.83 



Amount and Value of Exports of Wheat and Flour from the 
U. S. at Decennial Periods. 



Date. 


WHEAT. 


FLOUR. 




Bushels. 


Value. 


Bbls. 


Value. 


1790 


1,018.339 
239,929 
216,833 
25,821 
408.910 
868,585 

1,026.725 




619,681 
1,102,444 
1,445,012 
1,056,119 
1,806,525 
1,515,817 
2,202,83*5 




1800 




1810 






1820 
1830 
1840 
1850 


20,925 

523,270 

822,881 

1,025,732 


4,298,043 

9,038,458 

7,759,646 

10,524,331 



Note. — The price of Flour for New Orlcau3 and St. Louis could not be obtained for 
earlier years than those respectively given. 

28 



330 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

* CULTURE OP WHEAT. 

Soil. — The culture of the soil is the chief characteristic 
of civilization as distinguished from barbarism or savage- 
ism, and the culture of the wheat plant more especially marks 
this difference. In the early periods of the history of the 
human race, herds and flocks were pastured on perennial 
grasses which grew on the hill-sides and in the woodlands, but 
mankind did not then sufficiently understand the laws of 
Nature to reproduce by his own care and attention the plants 
which his herds and flocks had exterminated ; therefore as 
soon as the pasture became scanty by constant cropping, new lo- 
cations were sought — habitations became temporary and tribes 
of mankind were necessarily nomadic. But a new era dawned 
upon the history of mankind when it was discovered that plants 
could be reproduced by culture ; when for the first time it was 
proclaimed that if the seeds of plants were carefully placed in 
the soil appropriately prepared and at the proper season, the 
plant would spring up from the seed as a Phoenix from its 
ashes. In commemoration of this important discovery the 
ancients instituted rites and ceremonies which were religiously 
observed. The discovery produced a demand for implements 
with which to scarify or scratch the surface of the soil and to 
prepare a " seed bed" for the seed; — to produce these imple- 
ments required skill and labor, and thus was inaugurated a 
branch of industry which from that day until the present has 
been unable to supply the demand. The progress of Agricul- 
ture — the introduction of better and more efficient implements 
belong rather to the History of Agriculture, than a Treatise 
on the Wheat Plant ; it may therefore not be pertinent to 



PHYSICAL PROCJJIF.SK. 331 

enumerate any of the many changes which have been made. 
The first implements were necessarily exceedingly rude in con- 
struction, uncouth in appearance and unwieldy to the opera- 
tor. The primitive plow ! spade ! and sickle ! What a theme 
for an an-tiquary ! And yet who shall dare deny that the rude 
plow, shod perhaps, by some ruder son of Vulcan, the sickle 
ill-favoredly forged, and the spade made ruder than either, 
have not determined the fate, secured the happiness and civil- 
ized the one half of mankind ? 

The culture of the soil although it has engrossed the con- 
stant attention of at least one-fourth of the civilized portion 
of mankind from the days of the first Thinite King of Mane- 
tho's Egyptian Dynasties down to the present time, remains 
almost as much an unsolved problem as in the days of the Pto- 
lemies. Since the days of the last Egyptian King, a new 
continent has been not only discovered but peopled ; — the little 
islands which Caesar found sparsely inhabited by a race but 
little superior to savages have become the most densely pop- 
ulated portion of the globe, and produced works of art un- 
surpassed by any thing of antiquity. These little islands 
have grown mighty in power, and the sun never sets on their 
dominions ! The Printing Press, Mariner's Compass, the ap- 
plication of steam as a motive power both to machinery and in 
navigation has been successfully consummated; the lightnings 
have been converted into " mail-carriers ;' : the size and distance 
of the planets have been accurately determined ; the telescope 
and microscope invented, and the wonders of the planetary 
and microscopic world revealed ; the composition of most of 
the substances found in Nature has been determined by the 
magic hand of the analytic chemist. Yet with all the pro- 
gress made in arts and sciences, during the past two thousand 
years, we have made no progress whatever in ascertaining pre- 
cisely how the plant elaborates organic from inorganic sub- 
stances — we know very little more of the process by which the 
wheat plant prepares starch and gluten drawn from the earthy 
substances in which it grows and deposits them in its grains, 



332 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

than was known in the days of Moses — to "be sure we know 
that the roots receive the nourishment from the soil — possibly 
this was known to the ancients, and probably they believed the 
function of the roots to be no other than merely to fix the 
plant in its locality. Look at the long list of vegetable phys- 
iologists of the present and past century — men who have devo- 
ted not only a few months, but an entire lifetime in the 
endeavor to determine the structure and function of the differ- 
ent parts of plants ; then turn to the list of names which 
shine the brightest in chemistry, and ask if any one of them — 
commencing with Black and ending with Liebig, have been 
able to produce any organic substance from inorganic ones by 
any chemical process? Can any of them from the same soil 
on which the wheat plant thrives and flourishes produce by 
any chemical process even a grain of starch, which is com- 
posed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen only? No, no. 
Chemistry has not yet penetrated the arcana of Nature, and 
the little wheat plant has never yet revealed to man how or 
by what mysterious process it elaborates starch from the soil. 

Is then the science of Agriculture so simple and can any 
one who runs, read it surely and correctly ? Chemistry and 
physiology aided by untiring investigations and observation 
have placed the world in possession of many facts, from which 
innumerable hypotheses and " fine spun' 1 theories were elabo- 
rated." 

When the chemist analyzed the different portions of the 
wheat plant, as the stalk, chaff, grains, etc., it was very natural 
to suppose that if substances containing the elements absorbed 
by the plant were added to the soil, not only would its fertili- 
ty not deteriorate, but the crops would absolutely be increased ; 
the inference was rational as well as natural, but practice has 
not confirmed the hypothesis. The theory has not been borne 
out by practice for the reason that chemists as well as empirical 
agriculturalists forgot that the ingredients added to the soil 
might form new combinations with substances already there; 
form combinations which to say the least would not be favora- 



MINERAL MANURES NOT ALWAYS FERTILIZERS. 333 

ble to the growth of the plant. Thus if a soil is strongly 
impregnated with oxide of iron, and it receive a dressing of 
gypsum or Plaster of Paris, the sulphuric acid contained in 
the latter will combine with the iron, and form sulphate of 
iron, or u copperas ," which is exceedingly deleterious to the 
growth of plants. 

Chemists and agriculturists seem to have taken it for granted 
that the plant would take up each element as it was placed in 
the soil, and in cases where several elements were in combi- 
nation that the plant would analyze or separate them. Some 
combinations are readily separated or analyzed, while others 
with the utmost difficulty only can be made to sever their 
union. For example, in a mixture of clover seed, mustard 
seed, flax seed, white sand and saw dust, a complete separation 
of the several substances is readily effected, and each particu- 
lar seed, or grain of sand or saw-dust withdrawn from the 
combination ; but in a mixture of flour, milk, sugar, water 
and yeast, the separation is infinitely more difficult — especi- 
ally if the mixture (bread) is baked. The former of these 
mixtures is a mechanical combination, while the latter is a 
chemical one. Thus in the case referred to in the preceding 
paragraph they would not be affected by the sulphuric acid, or 
oxide of iron separately, but by the new combination, or cop- 
peras, and the result would be that instead of the Plaster of 
Paris acting as a fertilizer, it in that case at all events would 
act very injuriously. 

" If we submit," says Leibig in his last work on Agricul- 
tural Chemistry ( April, 1859), " to a close scrutiny the com- 
portment of the salts of ammonia, nitrate of soda, and com- 
mon salt toward soils, we find that not one of these salts acts 
in the same form in which it has been added to the ground. 
The salts of ammonia are immediately decomposed by the 
soil ; the ammonia is retained, while the acid enters into com- 
bination with lime, magnesia, alkalies, or, in short, with any 
basic substance in immediate contact, and capable of combin- 
ing with it. The action of these salts is therefore of a two- 



334 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

fold nature. On the one baud, they enrich the soil with 
ammonia ; on the other, their acid gives rise to new com- 
pounds which come into operation. The alkalies and alka- 
line earths which combine with the acid acquire thereby a 
greater degree of solubility, and are more readily diffused 
through the soil. If the ground is rich in magnesia or lime, 
the salts of these bases are formed ; but their influence, with 
the exception of that of gypsum on certain plants, can not be 
estimated very high. The use of sal ammonia, instead of sul- 
phate of ammonia, gives rise to chloride of magnesium and 
chloride of calcium, which acts rather unfavorably than other- 
wise on vegetation. That salts of these bases are generated 
by the action of soils on salts of ammonia, and that the new 
salts exert no particularly favorable influence on the increase 
of produce, are facts on which no doubt can rest." 

When chemists announced to the world that wheat grains 
had been analyzed, and the component substances fully deter- 
mined, both in a quantitative and qualitative sense, there were 
not wanting those who reasoned from effect to cause, and 
sought to find in the soil the elements which gave rise to the 
combinations and elements found in the plant and grain. 
This class of theorists regarded the plant as a mechanical 
machine, and appeared to take for granted that if certain 
substances in certain quantities were added to the soil the 
plant would mold them into wheat ; it did not occur to them 
that the plant was a laboratory, and operated in a chemical, 
rather than in a mechanical manner. 

The chemist announced that the ash of the grain was com- 
posed of silica, phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid, carbonic acid, 
lime, magnesia, peroxide of iron, potash and soda. It then 
was very natural to infer that these substances were withdrawn 
from the soil, and to insure continued fertility must be 
replaced. But as almost every soil contains these substances 
and elements in greater or less proportion, one would as nat- 
urally infer that all soils were wheat-producing soils. The 
next step to be consummated was to obtain an analysis of soils 



ANALYSIS OP SOILS NOT RELIABLE. 



335 



in order to supply in an intelligent manner the materials in 
which the soil was deficient. This step undoubtedly was one 
in a right direction, but too much was presumed upon the 
ability of chemistry to determine. The quantity of some of 
the elements essentially necessary are so very small that it is 
difficult to determine whether they exist in too large or too 
small quantities. Of some, a single grain by weight in a 
pound of soil is all that is absolutely necessary, yet it is ex- 
ceedingly difficult for the most expert chemist to determine 
whether one-fourth of a grain, a single grain, or ten grains 
exist in the pound of soil which he has analyzed. It is ex- 
ceedingly difficult to determine from even a very correct 
analysis of soils, which is fertile and which is otherwise, as 
the following table, compiled from authentic sources, will 
exhibit at a single glance : — 



Silica and siliceous sand 

Alumina .. 

Peroxide and protoxide of 

iron 

Peroxide of Manganese ... 

Lime 

Magnesia 

Potash 

Carbonate of Soda 

Phosphoric acid, combined 

with lime ..,...« 

Sulphuric acid, combined 

with lime 

Chlorine 

Humus soluble in alkalies 
Nitrogenous organic matter 

Humus, insoluble 

Carbonic acid 

Organic matter 



No. 1. 


No. 2. 


No. 3. 


No. 3 a 


No. 4. 


70.900 


79.538 


87.143 


94.261 


80.68 


. 6.996 


7.306 


5.666 


1.376 


6.55 


6.102 


5.824 


2.220 


2.336 


| 2.57 


0.200 


1.320 


0.360 


1.200 


2.218 


0.619 


0.564 


0.243 


0.35 


3.280 


1.024 


0.312 


0.310 


1.53 


0.130 


0.200 


0.120 


f 


1.40 


6. 550 


0.024 


0.025 


-j 0.240 

trace 


0.53 


1.362 


1.776 


0.060 


0.05 


0.149 


0.122 


0.027 


0.034 


0.05 


0.067 


0.036 


0.036 


trace 




0.540 


1.950 


1.304 






0.000 


0.236 


1.011 






1.500 




1.072 




0.53 
5.76 



No. 5. 

85.11 
4.51 



3.15 

0.77 
0.63 
0.74 
0.22 

0.12 

0.06 



0.31 
4.38 



No. 1 is an analysis of a very barren field. (Lichig). Yet 
it has all the elements and combinations which are found in 
No. 2. Lime, magnesia and soda are especially abundant in 
it. No. 2, surface soil of alluvial land in Ohio, remarkable 



336 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

for its great fertility. (Liebig). No. 3, surface soil of a 
mountainous district in the vicinity of the Ohio river, also 
distinguished for its great fertility. (Liehig.) Who will say 
that there is a closer agreement in the analyses of Nos. 2 and 
3 than there is between Nos. 1 and 2? Yet No. 1 is sterile, 
while Nos. 2 and 3 are remarkable for their fertility. No. 
3 a is an analysis of the subsoil of No. 3. No. 4 is an 
analysis of the prairie soil in Illinois ( Voelker), and No. 5 is 
an analysis of good wheat soil of England. The difference 
between Nos. 4 and 5 is absolutely less than between Nos. 
2 and 3, and yet on the prairie soils of Illinois winter wheat 
can not be grown, while in England on soil of analysis No. 5, 
the best wheat in the world is produced. 

No absolute guide as to the fertility or barrenness is obtained 
by a chemical analysis of the soil ; nevertheless chemical 
analyses of soils should not be discouraged — they furnish 
many data from which important results are obtained. The 
fertility of the soil depends entirely on the amount of soluble 
matter it contains — or rather the soluble condition of the in- 
organic elements. The analyses of two soils may show that 
they are composed of precisely the same elements and in the 
same proportions, but the appropriate materials for the nutri- 
tion of plants may in the one have been in a proper, while in 
the other they were in an improper condition ; — no one can 
judge from the analysis of a loaf of bread whether it was 
" light" and palatable, or whether it was u sad " and heavy 
and unpalatable ; and yet the value of the bread depends 
entirely upon the condition in which it was. 

The best exponents of the fertility of the soil are the indi- 
genous trees and plants which are found upon it. Where 
nature is the planter we may rest assured that the seeds are 
placed in the soil most appropriate and congenial for them. 
A soil in which the common beech tree flourishes is always 
sure to retain considerable moisture, and as a general thing is 
a heavy, stiff clay ; the pines and chestnut on the contrary are 
found flourishing in a light sandy soil. The observations of 



FOREST TREES EXPONENTS OF THE QUALITY OF SOIL. 337 

all so strongly confirm this view that it may be accepted as a 
rule or law of nature. The organization of a plant is so deli- 
cate, and for its proper growth and development requires the 
materials of the soil to be so precisely adapted to its wants, that 
it can not flourish where any of the elements required by it 
are either wanting, or not in a proper condition of solubility 
in the soil. But as we do not know the precise requirements 
of each of the various species of trees and plants, we must 
take it for granted that the tree or plant itself, where it is 
fully and properly developed has found the requisite qualities 
and conditions ; and from this fact we are enabled to deter- 
mine many nice distinctions in the soil, when their general 
appearance of color, consistency, etc., are apparently identical. 

The smallest indigenous plant that carpets the soil is just 
as much an exponent of the soil as the giant oak, and indi- 
cates the precise quality and condition just as much more 
definitely as its structure and organization is more delicate 
than the former. It is no argument that some plants are 
found growing on very different soils — this only proves that 
the plants have great tenacity of life, and great capacity of 
adapting themselves to the different circumstances in which 
they are placed. If, then, we rely upon plants of this char- 
acter as exponents of the soil, we must be governed in our 
judgments more by their size than by their presence. Thus 
the common daisy thrives on a poor soil, but a thriving daisy 
is not necessarily an evidence of a poor soil. It naturally 
loves a good rich soil, but other plants may choke and smother 
it, and it may be found flourishing upon good land when from 
any cause even the grasses have failed. 

Forest trees and indigenous plants may be regarded as 
exponents of the physical condition of the soil, rather than 
of its chemical composition. This assertion is amply con- 
firmed by numerous facts. A soil on which oak, hickory and 
tulip, or yellow poplar are the principal trees of the native 
forest, is most suitable for the growth of wheat. Maple and 
beech producing soil is better adapted to spring or summer 
29 



338 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

crops — such as barley, corn and potatoes. The adaptation of 
"white oak soil" to winter wheat, and the beech and maple 
to spring crops, shows that it is the physical condition that 
determines the fitness of the soils for cultivated crops; for we 
have only to bear in mind that winter wheat, barley, oats and 
corn are identical in chemical composition. In both varieties 
of soil the chemical constituents which are necessary to the 
growth of beech, maple, oak, poplar and hickory, wheat, bar- 
ley, corn and potatoes are present, but the physical condition, 
or mechanical texture of the two is different. This difference 
in the texture of soils seems to have a corresponding influ- 
ence upon the healthy functions of certain kinds of trees 
and cultivated crops with that which an undrained and marshy 
soil is well known to have in this respect. 

The following indications of soil from the character of trees 
found growing on it is compiled from Michaux's American 
Sylva : 

White Oak (Quercus alba). This oak is not common on 
lands of extraordinary fertility, like those of Tennessee, Ken- 
tucky, and the Genessee Valley in New York. He relates 
that he has traveled whole days in the spacious valleys watered 
by the western rivers without seeing a single stock. The 
White Oak is found in every exposure and on every soil 
which is not extremely dry or subject to long inundations ; 
but the largest stocks grow in humid places, where it compo- 
ses entire forests. Where the surface of the country is undu- 
lating, the soil yellow, consisting partly of clay with a mixture 
of calcareous stones, abundant crops of wheat are produced. 

From this we are led to infer that the White Oak flourishes 
best on second rate soils — and also that wheat does best on 
second rate soils. In confirmation of this view a short quo- 
tation from "Agriculture in North America," by Robert 
Russell (1857), may not be inappropriate. "In many of the 
rich valleys of the State of New York — such as the Mohawk 
— Indian corn is often cultivated on the same land for many 
years in succession. On these soils it is said to produce, on 



SOILS INDICATED BY OAKS. 339 

the average of years, double, or even triple the number of 
bushels on an acre that wheat will do, for the latter is a most 
uncertain crop on all rich and loamy soils. Indeed through- 
out the American continent, wheat only grows well upon soils 
of moderate fertility, and such as are rather deficient id veget- 
able matter. The inferiority of the climate of America for the 
growth of wheat upon rich soils, is counterbalanced, however, 
by the superiority of its growth upon second-rate ones." 

We believe it is the general experience that wheat in Ohio, 
grown upon very rich soils, is much more liable to mildew, 
rust, and to have tender straw, than upon soils of moderate 
fertility only. 

The Post Oak (Quercus obtusiloha) is found wherever the 
soil is dry, gravelly, and unsubstantial ; it forms a considera- 
ble portion of the forests which are composed principally of 
Black, Scarlet, Spanish, and Black Jack Oaks, Dogwood, etc. 

Water White Oak (Q. lyratd) requires a more con- 
stantly humid soil than any other species of this genus in 
the United States — it is found exclusively in great swamps on 
the borders of rivers. In these gloomy forests it is united 
with the large Tupelo, White Elm, Wahoo, Plane tree, Water 
Bitternut Hickory, and Water Locust. 

Swamp White Oak (Q. prinus discolor') is found only on 
the edges of swamps, and in wet places exposed to inundations, 
and not in forests at large. A thorough system of under- 
drainage will destroy all the Swamp and Water White Oaks, 
wherever it is practiced — the fact that even surface drainage 
is practiced to a considerable extent may account for the fact 
that forest trees, such as Beech and Elm, which depend for 
nutrition on the labors of the lateral roots, are rapidly dying 
out in many parts of this and other States. 

Chestnut White Oak (Q. prinus palustr 'is) always chooses 
spots that are rarely inundated, where the soil is loose, deep, 
constantly cool and luxuriantly fertile. The Yellow Oak (Q. 
prinus acuminata) indicates a loose, deep, fertile soil. Bock 
Chestnut Oak (Q. montana) indicates a rocky soil. The small 



340 THE WHEAT PLANT 

Chestnut Oak (Q. prinus chincapin) indicates a barren soil 
The Jack Oak, or Laurel Oak indicates a cool, humid soil. 
The Black Jack Oak (Q.ferruginea) is found on soils com- 
posed of red, argillaceous sand, mingled with gravel. The 
Bear Oak ($. Ban-uteri) is never found [naturally] mingled 
with other shrubs in the forest, but always in tracts of several 
hundred acres, which it covers almost exclusively — it is found 
on dry, sandy lands, mingled with gravel. The Black Oak 
((?. tinctora) grows in any soil, but will flourish where the 
soil is lean, gravelly and uneven ; is found in company with 
Post, Spanish and Scarlet Oaks, with Mockernut Hickory, and 
Yellow Pine. The Bed Oak (Q. rubra) requires a fertile soil, 
and cool climate. 

Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) grows in rich soil — :not in 
sandy or wet — grows with Honey Locust, Bed Mulberry, 
Shellbark Hickory, Black Sugar Maple, Hackberry, and Red 
Elm. All these trees indicate the richness of the soil in 
which they grow. The Butternut (J", cathartica) requires a 
good soil. Michaux says that sugar has been manufactured 
from the sap of this tree. The Bitternut, or Swamp Hickory 
(J. amara) requires an excellent soil, constantly cool and 
inundated. 

The Mockernut Hickory, or White-heart Hickory (J. Tu- 
mentosa), requires a deep rich soil ; it grows mingled with the 
Sweet Gum, Poplar, Sugar Maple, and Black Walnut. The 
Shellbark Hickory (J. squarrosa), grows almost exclusively in 
wet grounds which are inundated for weeks together ; it is 
found in company with the Swamp White Oak, Bed Flowering 
Maple, Sweet Gum, Buttonwood, and Tupelo. The thick 
Shellbark Hickory requires a similar soil. The Pignut Hick- 
ory (J. porcina) requires a moist but a better soil than the 
Mockernut. 

The White Maple (Acer eriocarpum) is found on the 
banks of such streams only as have limpid waters and a grav- 
elly bed ; it is never found in swamps or other wet grounds 
inclosed in forests, where the soil is black and miry. The 



SOILS INDICATED BY FOREST TREES. 341 

Red or Soft Maple (.4. Rubrum) requires a wet and frequently 
overflowed situation. The Sugar, or Hard Maple requires a 
moist yet fertile soil. The Box Elder (A, negundo) indicates 
a deep, fertile, and constantly moist soil. The Dogwood 
(Cornus Florida') flourishes in a gravelly soil. The Cucum- 
ber tree {Magnolia acuminata') requires a deep, fertile soil, 
and a moist atmosphere. 

The Pawpaw (Anona triloba) is indicative of a soil luxu- 
riantly fertile. The Yellow Poplar, or Tulip tree (Lirio- 
dendron tulipiferd), grows in deep, loamy, and extremely 
fertile soils, which are neither too wet nor too dry. The 
Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) grows in moist, cool grounds, 
requires loose, deep, and fertile soil — it never grows on dry 
lands, nor among White and Red Oaks. 

The Crab Apple (Malus Coronaria) requires a fertile soil, 
and cool, moist place. The White Birch (Betula populifo- 
lia) grows in scanty forests, and indicates a dry and meager 
soil. The Red Birch (B. rubra) grows with the White Maple 
and Sycamore. The Yellow Birch (B. luted) indicates a cool, 
rich soil — it grows with Ashes, Hemlock, Spruce, and Black 
Spruce. The Common Locust (Robinia pseudo-acacia) re- 
quires a mild climate, and very fertile soil. Laurus Sassa- 
fras grows on all soils except those too wet or too dry. 

The Wild Cherry (Cerasus Virginiana) requires a rich 
soil ; it grows with the overcup White Oak, Black Walnut and 
Red Elm. The Ohio Buckeye (Pavia Ohioensis) requires a 
loose, deep, and fertile soil — cool and humid climate — hence 
it is generally found on river banks. The Cottonwood tree 
(Popidus Canadensis, P. Argentea) is indicative of a deep, unc- 
tuous soil. The Aspen (P. tremuloides) indicates lands of a 
middling quality. The White, Gray, or Hickory Poplar (P. 
canescens) most generally indicates a moist soil. The Chest- 
nut {Castanea vesca) indicates a light, gravelly soil. The 
White Beech (Fagus sylvestris) indicates a deep, moist, and 
cold soil, while the Red Beech (F. ferruginea) indicates 
lands more dry— soils which are excellent for corn. The 



342 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Hackberry or Hoop-ash (Celtis crassifolia) , is found in deep, 
fertile soils. It grows with Black Walnut, Butternut, Linn, 
Black Maple, and Elm. The White, Red, Green, Blue, and 
Black or Water Ashes (Fraxinus) are indicative of a deep, 
rich, yet very moist soil. The White Elm and Wahoo 
(Iflmus Americana) are found in low, humid, but very sub- 
stantial soils, in company with the Red Maple and Shagbark 
Hickory; but the Red Elm is seldom found with the White, 
and indicates a soil free from moisture. The Linn, or Bass- 
wood (Tilia Americana}, grows with Sugar Maples and the 
White Oak. The Pines, Cedars, and Junipers, indicate a soil 
which is warm, dry, often sandy or gravelly, and is easily 
exhausted. 

These observations were made by the Messrs. Michaux 
(father and son) more than half a century since. They are 
the more valuable because the forests were then in a very 
great degree undisturbed, and the trees grew where nature 
had planted them. 

It may be laid down as a general rule, that a rich and va- 
ried natural vegetation, trees as well as plants, is indicative of 
a soil of good capacity; one which not only contains all the 
elements necessary for the growth of most cultivated plants, 
but free from any noxious substances, and in that physical 
condition to allow of its profitable cultivation ; while on the 
other hand, a scanty vegetation, embracing few species only, 
indicate the absence of some important element, or some 
jmysical imperfection. 

The class of farmers that emigrated from Pennsylvania to 
Ohio during the first thirty-five years of the existence of the 
State invariably selected very heavily timbered " white oak " 
lands as the best wheat lands. 

The soil of Stark county may be divided into three distinct 
classes, and the settlement of these classes of lands is perhaps 
the criterion of the value of the empirical method of deter- 
mining the value of lands for farming purposes. The first of 
these divisions embraces all the heavily timbered, white oak, 



BEECH AND PLAINS LANDS IN STARK CO. 343 

rolling lands. These lands occupy the greater portion of the 
county. The second division comprises a large district in the 
north-east portion of the county, known as the " beech lands." 
The third division is a strip, varying from three to four miles 
in width, passing through the center of the county, known 
as the "plains" 

The lands comprised in the first division were first settled, 
cleared and cultivated — they are composed as a general thing 
of a "clayey loam" for surface soil, and a stiff clay subsoil. 
The Tulip tree, Linden, Poplar, and Walnut are very com- 
mon on these cak lands. 

The beech lands are low and level; scarcely any other than 
Beech timber is found on them ; occasionally, however, an 
Elm, Water Ash, and Hickory are met with. The soil is a 
heavy, compact clay, in its natural state retaining excessive 
moisture nearly all the year, but when cleared is liable to 
"bake." Ditching and surface draining, however, have ren- 
dered these lands valuable for corn rather than wheat, 
although they are better adapted for meadows and grazing. 
They were settled next after the oak lands, and were then 
considered second-rate lands. 

The Plains are a comparatively level district, composed of 
sandy and gravelly loam — the gravel in places [Charity School 
at Kendall] is one hundred feet deep. Wells have been sunk 
to the depth of sixty-six feet through fine gravel only [near 
Bienville]. The first settlers of the country relate that these 
plains were entirely destitute of shrubs or trees, and produced 
nothing other than some perennial and very hardy annual 
plants. In 1820 they were covered with " Scrub Oaks" from 
three to five feet in hight. The timber on them now. is As- 
pen, Black Jack Oak, Pin Oak, W r hite Oak, Burr Oak, and 
Hazel bushes. The farmers could not be induced to purchase 
any of these lands prior to 1830, at even a slight advance on 
Government prices. About 1833 a number of Bostonians 
organized a company at Massillon, Stark county, under the 
name of the " Massillon Boiling Mill Company.'" This 



344 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

company purchased many thousands of acres of the "plains" 
cleared off the Scrub and other Oaks, introduced "bull" 
plows, which required three to four yoke of cattle to operate 
them, through the many roots left in the ground. 

To the utter astonishment of all the Pennsylvania " oak- 
land " farmers, these plains produced abundant crops of most 
excellent wheat; and many of these " j>lains " farms are at 
present among the very best wheat farms in that count} 7 . 

From all that we have been able to learn of the Darby 
Plains and Pickaway Plains, we should not be surprised to 
learn that they are as good wheat lands as the plains in 
Stark county. 

Speaking of the soils in the United States, Robert Russel 
says : " In the township of Caledonia (in Western New York), 
which is chiefly farmed by Scotchmen or their descendants, 
the soil is light and gravelly, and wide piles of stones lie 
around the borders of many fields, monuments to the industry 
of the owners. Notwithstanding appearances, I was told that 
wheat and clover are as sure crops in that township as in any 
other within the State ; and I can bear testimony that the 
young layers of clover were truly beautiful. The farmers here, 
as in Scotland, have learned to judge of the character and qual- 
ity of the land by the kind of stones that are strewed over it. 
In the Genessee country, hard and flinty stones are regarded 
as indicating that the soil is well suited for the production of 
wheat and clover. Soils which are derived from the boulder 
clay are capable of growing the largest crops of wheat and 
barley, but they require a great deal more labor to cultivate 
them. These clay soils are by no means rich in vegetable 
mold, but have a fine, healthy red tinge, derived from the 
oxide of iron, which the eye of practical men look upon as 
being associated with something that promotes the healthy 
growth of every crop that is cultivated." 

The above indications may be valid for Western New York, 
but may mislead in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, or Kentucky. 

It may not be inappropriate in this place to present a brief 



CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS. 



345 



classification of soils, which will in some degree assist in deter- 
mining the kind of crop to be grown upon it. It is not pro- 
posed in this essay to treat of soils in detail, and we shall be 
content in the chapter on the treatment of soils to confine 
ourself to a wheat soil only. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS. 



Sand may contain : 
Silica, 

Oxide of Iron, 
Lime. 



In Small 
Quantity 



Limestone or Calcareous matter 
may contain : 

Lime, 

Silica, 

Alumina, 
In Small Oxide of Iron, 
Quantity. " Potash, 

Soda, 

Phosphoric Acid, 

Sulphuric Acid. 



Clay may Contain : 
f Silica, 
Alumina, 
Lime, 



In Smaller 
Quantities. 



Potash, 
Soda, 

Phosphoric Acid, 
Sulphuric Acid. 



Organic Matter, or Decaying 
Vegetable and Animal Matter may 
contain* 

Humus, 

Other Vegetable Remains, 

Animal Remains. 

In Small 



Quantity, 
(butinafine 
state of div- 
ision, and 
well incor- 
porated, the 
mineral con- 
stituents of 
former gen- 
erations of 
vegetables 
or crops). 



Silica, 

Potash, 

Soda, 

Phosphoric Acid, 

Sulphuric Acid, 

Chlorine. 



According to the preponderance of one or more of these 
compounds, soils are arranged in the following classes : Veg- 
etable molds, clay soils, sandy soils, calcareous soils, marly 
soils, and loamy soils. Let us now briefly consider the lead- 
ing character of each of these classes of soils. 

Vegetable Molds. — All soils that contain a large quantity 
of vegetable matter, either in the shape of humus or other- 
wise, are included in this class. Here we find two distinct 



346 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

varieties of soils, viz., fertile molds and peaty or boggy soils. 
By a large quantity of vegetable matter is meant more than 
five or six per cent.,* which is the quantity usually found in 
ordinary soils. In garden molds there is generally about 9 
to 10 per cent, of organic matter ; in peaty and boggy soils, 
often as much as 70 per cent. Hence we see the amount of 
organic matter is no criterion of fertility. The superior 
quantity of garden mold, as compared with the soils of our 
fields, is due not so much to the organic matter or humus it 
contains, as to its finely-divided and well-worked condition, 
and to the more complete mixture of its constituents. 

In boggy and peaty lands it is this excess of vegetable mat- 
ter that renders them unproductive. Hence the proper course 
toward their improvement consists in employing the most 
efficient means at our disposal for getting rid of. or altering 
the condition of this vegetable matter; in most cases, burn- 
ing and the liberal use of lime, will effect this object. 

Clay Soils. — Soils of this description are distinguished by 
their cold, dense qualities, and are well known as " heavy 
soils," for the reason that the successful cultivation of these 
soils can only be accomplished by the expenditure of a great 
amount of labor, strength, and capital. We have already no- 
ticed the peculiar retentive quality of clay, and have remarked 
upon the usefulness of this property of clay. But in soils 
that consist almost entirely of clay, this quality becomes too 
much of a good thing, and constitutes the chief obstacle that 
the tiller of clay soils has to encounter. For this reason, 
little can be done with clay soils until they are thoroughly 
drained. Another operation, often found very successful in 
the reclamation of unproductive clay land, is burning; liming 
also is a valuable means of bringing into cultivation soils in 
which an excessive quantity of clay is the cause of infertility. 
The subsequent treatment in the management of clay soils, 

* In stating the quantity of soils, we generally speak of this composi- 
tion in one hundred parts, or say so much per cent, of a substance. 



SANDY AND CALCAREOUS SOILS. 347 

consists in working them in as complete a manner, and as 
often as the state of the ground will permit. 

With a great amount of labor and expense clay soils become 
exceedingly fertile, and return a good profit to the cultivator, 
since they require less in the shape of manure than most 
other kinds of soil. This is because many clays contain inex- 
haustible quantities of the mineral substances required by 
plants, and only require proper management to yield these 
materials in an available form. Hence, clay soils are particu- 
larly adapted for the production of grain crops, especially 
wheat. 

Sandy Soils are those that contain from 70 to 90 per cent, 
of sand. They are distinguished by characters the reverse of 
those possessed by clay soils. They are light, porous, deficient 
in retaining moisture ; they never suffer from drought, and by 
heavy rains are deprived of the little valuable matter they 
may originally contain. The chief defect of these soils is 
this want of retentiveness which allows the rain and water to 
wash out the valuable portions of any manure that may have 
been supplied, before the roots of the plants have had time to 
take up these substances. Hence the term " hungry " ap- 
plied by farmers to this sort of soil. 

For this reason, if at all practicable, the manure should be 
added in small and frequent doses. It is for the same reason 
that the system of liquid manuring succeeds on soils of this 
description. The improvement of such soils obviously con- 
sists in adding clay, marl, etc., if such materials can be pro- 
cured at a price at all consistent with the benefit they are 
likely to produce. 

Calcareous, or Lime Soils. — This is a most extensive class of 
soils, including soils of most diversified characters. To this 
class belong all soils in which carbonate of lime forms the 
greater part of the bulk, or that contain more than 20 per 
cent, of lime ; but since the rocks from which these soils are 
formed vary most widely in their composition and physical 



348 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

character, it follows that soils of every degree of fertility are 
included in this division. 

Lime soils are generally light soils, and easy to work ; the 
greater number are poor, thin soils ; some of them, however, 
are exceedingly good soils, and remarkable for their fertility. 
Lime soils of all descriptions are particularly adapted for the 
growth of leguminous crops, as clover, peas, etc. 

Marly Soils are those that consist of a mixture of clay and 
lime, and contain from 5 to 20 per cent, of lime, and whose 
qualities are of course intermediate, between clay and calcare- 
ous soils. These soils are subdivided into clay marls, chalk 
marls, sandy marls, etc. Marls of different kinds are often 
used as manures, and generally with good results. The effects 
produced by marls are usually more striking than those which 
follow the application of other calcareous matters. This 
superiority is mostly due to the phosphoric acid which many 
marls contain. 

Loamy Soils are intimate mixtures of sand, clay, lime, and 
organic matter. They are subdivided into clay loam, sandy 
loam, etc. These are probably the richest sorts of soils, next 
to the better sorts of vegetable molds. Like vegetable molds, 
they contain a fair proportion of clay, sand, lime, etc., and 
the whole in a friable, well-mixed condition ; and it is to 
this fact, that the superior quality of loamy soils is mainly 
due. 

In order to convey a better idea of the composition of soils, 
we annex the following table, which includes analyses of each 
class : 



COMPOSITION OF SOILS. 



349 



COMPOSITION OF SOILS. 



Organic Matters, Humus, 

etc 

Oxide of Iron 

Alumina 



Lime 

Magnesia 

Potash , \ 

Soda / 

Phosphoric Acid 

Sulphuric Acid 

Chlorine 

Insoluble Silicates (clay 
and sand) 



Carbonic Acid and loss. 



CD 

< 
o 



p 

>— « 

CD 

B 

o 



10.08 
6.30 
9.30 

1.01 
.20 

.01 

.13 
.17 



72.80 



100.00 



CP5 
O 

o 



p 
C3 



.49 
3.19 
2.65 

.24 
.70 
.12 
.02 
.07 

trace. 

trace. 

92.52 

(sand.) 



100.00 



> 

sift 



p 



3.88 
8.82 
6.67 



1.44 

.92 

1.48, 

1.08 

1.51 

trace. 



72.83 
1.87 



100.00 



£ 


o 
P 


>-i 


o 




p 


a> 


a 

CD 




o 


o 
g 


CO 



11.24 
4.87 1 
14.04/ 

.83 
1.02 
2.80 \ 
1.43/ 

.24 

.09 

.25 

63.19 



100.00 100.00 



6.33 
9.31 

Car .lime 
54.56 
trace. 

1.03 

trace, 
trace. 



28.77 



10.50 
11.92 

19.92 
.25 

.71 

.38 
.04 

.76 

55.52 



100.00 



This classification is usually adopted in the description of 
cultivated soils. The general composition of a soil, and its 
connection with one or other of the above classes, may in some 
measure be judged by examining it in the ordinary manner, 
by its color, texture, the character of the stones it may con- 
tain, the quantity of organic matter, etc. But to be able to 
speak positively on this subject, it is necessary to ascertain 
the precise composition of the soil. This can only be done by 
a chemical analysis. It is the business of the analytical 
chemist to do this in such a manner that each constituent of 
the soil may be separated, and its proportions determined. 

An approximate analysis of this sort is not difficult to make, 



350 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and might perhaps be performed by any one so disposed ; but 
since a chemical analysis is of very little use unless it is com- 
plete, that is to say, unless every thing contained in the soil 
is separated, and the potash, phosphoric acid, and other more 
valuable parts of the soil are accurately determined; and as 
these operations require much care even in the hands of an 
experienced chemist, we do not think it desirable to describe 
in any way the process for the chemical analysis of a soil. 

Another kind of analysis, often of great service in judging 
of the capabilities of a soil, is called a mechanical analysis, 
and requires much less care and accuracy in its performance 
than a chemical analysis. This kind of analysis has for its 
object the determination of the relative amount of organic 
matter, sand, clay, and lime, and in many cases is all that is 
necessary to decide important questions in the practical man- 
agement of soils. 

The value of chemical analysis in deciding agricultural 
questions is often very great, and in many cases at once de- 
termines whether a proposed scheme for improvement is cal- 
culated to succeed or not. For instance, in the important 
question of subsoiling, we can at once learn whether it is de- 
sirable or not to turn up the subsoil, by making a complete 
analysis of it : from the result of this analysis we can decide 
whether this admixture with the surface-soil is likely to pro- 
duce improvement or injury. Subsoils often contain poison- 
ous substances, which, if turned up, will of course exercise an 
injurious effect upon the surface-soil ; on the other hand, 
valuable fertilizing materials often lie hidden in the subsoil, 
which might greatly enrich the surface. Again, the infertility 
of a soil is often explained by an analysis. The soil may be 
suffering from the want of some material indispensable to the 
growth of plants, or it may contain something poisonous to 
plants ; in either case chemistry is generally able to enlighten 
us. and to point out the means for remedying the evil. Of a 
soil whose fertility is impaired, we can all pronounce that it 
wants manuring ; but with the assistance of an analysis we 



HOW TO TEST LIME IN A SOIL. o51 

may also learn in what substance the soil is deficient — or what 
kind of manure it wants. With this knowledge we may 
restore its fertility in the most economical manner, by sup- 
plying those materials only that are required, and leaving out 
all the others, in this case useless materials, always present in 
compound manures. Perhaps the most frequently occurring 
instance of practical benefit conferred by chemistry upon 
agriculture, is- manifested in the assistance it renders in con- 
nection with the question of liming. Chemistry tells us in 
the readiest manner, whether a soil wants liming or not, and 
points out the best plan of proceeding if it does. If, as often 
happens, we have a choice of two or three sorts of lime at our 
disposal, it will also tell us which sort is likely to produce the 
best effect. Limestones and marls vary most widely in their 
fitness for use in this way : many of them contain an excessive 
amount of magnesia, and on this account are dangerous to use. 
Others may contain appreciable quantities of the valuable 
phosphoric acid. 

On all these points chemical analysis will enlighten us. We 
may ascertain in a very ready manner if there is enough lime 
in a soil as follows : Place a little of the soil in a wineglass, 
and add some muriatic acid (this acid is well known, and can 
easily be procured by the name of spirits of salt). If the 
earth now r bubbles up, or effervesces, we may assume that 
plenty of lime is present in the soil ; but if no effect is per- 
ceptible, we may infer that the soil is deficient in lime. 

The lime in soils usually occurs in the shape of carbonate 
of lime : this, as we have seen, consists of lime and carbonic 
acid gas in a fixed or solid state. On adding to this combi- 
nation muriatic acid, the lime unites with this acid, and libe- 
rates its former companion — carbonic acid. This gas, in 
escaping from the mixture, gives rise to the bubbling up, or 
effervescence. This test, it must be remembered, is but a very 
rough one, and by no means conclusive as to the presence or 
absence of lime in a soil, yet it will often be found useful as 
a general test for lime. 



352 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XV. 

EXHAUSTION OF SOILS. 

This chapter is taken entire from Liebig's recent (April :\ 
1859), work on Modern Agriculture. It so completely des- 
cribes the process and rationale of exhaustion, while at the 
same time it is so very suggestive of the course to be pursued 
to retain the fertility of the soil, that no abstract, abridgment, 
or condensation of the original appeared to us satisfactory, 
and for that reason the chapter is introduced entire. 

The experiments of Kuhlmann, Schattenmann, and Lawes, 
agree in showing, that the salts of ammonia exert a most favor- 
able influence on the evolution of straw and leaves ; and if 
this influence extends in like manner to the underground or- 
gans, the roots, then it ought to follow, that the action of am- 
monia promotes the development of those organs destined for 
the absorption of food, and that these salts, applied at the 
proper time increase the number of the leaves and roots. 

This circumstance explains the favorable action exercised 
in spring by ammoniacal manures, while in summer their in- 
fluence under otherwise similar circumstances is but trifling. 

If the plant, in fact, has produced, during the first period 
of its growth, a sufficient number of leaves and roots, an addi- 
tional supply of ammonia can be of no great use to its further 
development, where the other constituents of food in the soil 
are not deficient; for the leaves can now receive from the air 
the nitrogenous food necessary to the formation of seeds. In 
summer there is more watery vapor in the air than in the 
colder spring ; and as the quantity of ammonia in the air, 
according to the observations of all experimenters, increases 
with the temperature and moisture, plants must necessarily 



EFFECTS OF NITROGENOUS MANURES. 353 

find more ammonia in the air in summer than in spring. We 
may as a rule hold, that in the colder seasons of the year, 
plants are more dependent on a supply of ammonia from the 
soil, than in the warmer ; or in other words, that the employ- 
ment of nitrogenous manures in spring is most advantageous 
to plants. 

In England and Scotland it is the result of general experi- 
ence, that the earthy phosphates are not always sufficient 
for a good and certain crop of turnips. When sown in 
May they require the addition of a nitrogenous manure, 
while, if this take place in the middle of June, they thrive 
generally as well with phosphates alone, as when combined 
with ammonia. 

We can hence tolerably well define the cases in which am 
monia is hurtful ; for while nitrogenous manures promote the 
growth of the leafy cabbage, they impede that of the roots of 
turnips.' The latter plant is frequently observed to shoot out 
only stem and leaves when growing on spots upon which ma- 
nure heaps have lain. Mangold- wurzel, in a similar case, 
produces the largest roots. The flowering time of these plants 
is delayed by this manure. 

To produce flowers and seeds, it appears to be a necessary 
condition in many cases, that the activity of the leaves and 
roots should reach a certain limit — a period of rest. It is 
only from this period that the vegetative activity appears to 
take a decidedly new direction, and that the sap, when no 
longer required for the production of new leaves and roots, is 
applied to the formation of flower and seed. 

With many plants, want of rain, and of the consequent sup- 
ply of food, limits the formation of leaves, and promotes the 
production of flowers. Dry and cool weather hastens the for- 
mation of seeds. In warm and moist climates, the cereals, 
when sown in summer, bear little or no seed ; and root crops 
flower and bear seed more readily on a soil poor in ammonia, 
than on one rich in this substance. 

In the employment of nitrogenous manure, the agriculturist 
- 30 



354 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

must consequently have distinctly before him the object which 
he wishes to attain. He must act with plants as with animals. 
When he wishes to fatten the latter, and at the same time to 
preserve their health, he gives them daily no more food than 
they can digest. 

Manures must always be of such a nature as to furnish 
plants with their suitable food at each period of their growth. 
Plants which have a longer period of vegetation, require con- 
sequently no supply, or, at least, a much smaller one of nitro- 
genous manures than those whose period of existence is short. 
For such as possess the shortest period of vegetation, and which 
grow rapidly and with vigor, the concentrated manures are 
preferable to those which give up their active constituents 
only slowly. In dry localities, winter wheat thrives after clo- 
ver without further manuring ; while, as a rule, the applica- 
tion of Peruvian guano or Chili-saltpetre (top dressing) is 
most beneficial to wheat sown in spring. 

The continuous cultivation of the same plant on the same 
field does not necessarily unfit this field for its production, if 
it is amply provided with the chemical conditions for the 
growth of the plant, and possesses physical properties of a 
right kind. If, after the third or fourth year, the plant no 
longer thrives on such a field, the reason manifestly does not 
lie in any deficiency of its vital conditions (for we have 
assumed that these are present), but in the accumulation of 
causes which injure its healthy growth. 

The food of plants consists of chemical compounds, which, 
in virtue of their chemical properties, produce certain effects 
on the substance of the cells and the most delicate portions of 
the frame of the leaves and roots, by which plants appropriate 
their food. Their chemical action increases with their quan- 
tity ; and if presented to plants beyond certain limits, they 
sicken and ultimately die. 
r In air in which free ammonia is present in excess, even 
though it be to only a most minute extent, many plants die as 
if struck with a poisonous blast. Carbonic acid acts in a sim- 



ORGANIC MANURES CAUSE DISEASES IN PLANTS. 355 

ilar way, though in a less degree ; and weak solutions of free 
alkalies or alkaline earth and their salts, in a soil, produce 
the same effects on other plants. 

In nature we find a wonderful provision exists in the chem- 
ical and physical properties inherent in the soil, for completely 
obviating the chemical action of the nutritive matters on the 
absorbent rootlets. Free ammonia, the free alkalies, and alka- 
line earths, are fixed by the soil, and with their loss of solu- 
bility they also lose those chemical properties which are 
hurtful to plants. Plants can then select what is necessary 
to their existence, without any hindrance from extraneous 
influences which may endanger their proper growth. 

It is evident that the soil must possess such a neutral chem- 
ical character as the most important condition cf the healthy 
structure and functions of the roots. The different species of 
plants require, however, special conditions for the growth of 
each. One species requires the constituents of fresh spring 
water ; another flourishes only in bogs ; others in carbonaceous 
and sour soils ; others, again, only in ground which abounds 
in alkaline earths. 

By cultivation the character of the soil is modified, not 
only by the removal in crops of a portion of its active in- 
gredients, but also by the addition to it, by means of many 
plants, of a greater amount of carbon and nitrogen substan- 
ces, in the form of the remains of roots. The enrichment 
of the soil in organic matter appears to be a cause of disease 
and death to many plants. Clover and many of the turnip 
tribe will no longer grow on such a soil, and several species 
of grass quickly disappear from it. 

It has been frequently found in England that turnips, 
when grown on the same field at too short intervals, become 
subject to a peculiar disease, which manifests itself in an un- 
usual development of the roots. Instead of a round, fleshy 
head, weighing several pounds, from which filamentous roots 
spread out into the ground, the tap-root splits into a great 
number of hard, woody, stem-like roots of the thickness of 



35 6 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the finger (finger and toe disease). This disease, which is 
owing to the peculiar character of the ground, is removed by 
a large dose of quick-lime. It is certain, however, that the 
lime does not act in this case, because there was previously a 
deficiency of it in the soil, for a supply of it to the field at 
seed time, like other manures, produces no effect, for the 
latter is apparent only after one or two years. To produce a 
favorable change in the quality of the field, the lime must 
manifestly penetrate to a certain depth, and this requires a con- 
siderable time. By the simple application of superphosphate 
of lime, to the complete exclusion of organic manures, Lawes 
succeeded ill raising nine Successive crops of turnips on the 
same land, and in the ninth year obtained 187 cwt. of roots 
per acre. 

Rain water, in slowly filtering through a soil rich in or- 
ganic matter, extracts a substance which communicates a 
brown color, and at times an acid reaction to the water. An 
addition of burnt lime to this soil destroys the solubility of 
the organic matter in water, and its power of diffusion in the 
soil. The lime decomposes the organic substances, and by 
its presence converts the process of putrefaction, which is 
hurtful -to plants, into one of decay which is advantageous 
to them. 

The presence of organic matter in a soil rich in silicates, 
enables water in percolating through the soil to dissolve a 
much larger quantity of hydrated silicic acid than is con- 
ducive, in many plants, to the process of absorption taking 
place in the roots. Lime destroys this property, and, by its 
direct action on the silicate, potash is ultimately set free, and 
rendered fit for distribution in the soil. Sainfoin continues 
to flourish on fields rich in lime. It is certain that the pres- 
ence of the lime in such a soil is not advantageous to this 
plant, because it requires more lime for its vital purposes than 
other plants which flourish luxuriantly on land much poorer 
in lime ; but the cause for the necessity of this excess of 
lime must be sought for in the fact, that it destroys certain 



NECESSITY OF ROTATION OF CROPS. 357 

injurious matters which gradually accumulate by the con- 
tinuous growth of this plant on the same soil. 

As a matter of course we understand, that, in a number of 
cases in which the same plant will no longer grow on the 
same soil, the cause just indicated is not alone in operation, 
but deficiency of food generally, or in the proper proportions, 
must be regarded as the proximate cause of the failure. The 
necessity for taking into consideration so many causes which 
impede or promote the growth of plants, makes the practice 
of agriculture one of the most difficult of pursuits. 

In fields bearing perennial plants, with roots which pene- 
trate to no great depth, similar injurious matters gradually 
collect, which are hurtful to the growth of future generations 
of plants. The irrigation of meadows appears to accomplish 
the important object among others of removing these injur- 
ious matters by the oxygen and by the carbonic acid dissolved 
in the water, which penetrates the ground, and brings it into 
a condition similar to that produced by careful ploughing. 
An analysis of the water flowing from the meadow would 
probably show that it removes as much mineral matter and 
ammonia as it brings to it. We do not, of course, here 
speak of meadows to which liquid manure has been applied, 
or which have been irrigated with rich sewerage water from 
towns; for in these cases two causes are in operation to aug- 
ment the produce, one of which (a supply of mineral food 
and ammonia) is almost excluded in the case of spring and 
river water. 

The culmiferous, turnip, and tuberous plants which the 
agriculturist cultivates, comport themselves in a most peculiar 
manner in the absorption of their mineral food. While sea- 
plants receive their whole supply of these substances in a 
state of solution from the surrounding medium, the water 
which percolates through cultivated soils, brings to the roots 
of land plants none of the three most important and most 
essential elements of food, viz., phosphoric acid, potash, and 
ammonia. Water alone withdraws from the soil none of 



358 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

these substances ; their passing into the organism of plants 
must therefore be directly effected by the organs of absorp- 
tion in the ground, with the co-operation of water. The roots 
extract these substances from those portions of the soil, pen- 
etrated with water, which are in direct contact with their 
absorbent surfaces ; and such portions of soil must contain 
the whole quantity necessary for the complete development 
of the plant, since the roots can receive none of them, except 
from the particles of earth with which they are directly in 
contact. 

If the food of plants in the soil can not move toward the 
roots, it is evident that the roots must spread about to look 
for food. 

Plants can not obtain from the soil more food than it con- 
tains. Further, its fertility is not to be measured by the 
whole quantity present in it, but only by that portion of the 
whole quantity which exists in the smallest particles of the 
soil. For it is only with such portions that the rootlets can 
come into close contact. % 

A piece of bone weighing about 30,000 milligrammes (one 
ounce) in a cubic foot of earth, produces no marked effect on 
its fertility. But if these 30,000 milligrammes of phosphate 
of lime be uniformly distributed throughout the earth, it will 
suffice for the nourishment of 120 wheat plants. Ten thou- 
sand milligrammes of food, having a surface extent of 100 
square millimetres, are within the same given time not more 
effective than ten milligrammes having the same surface ex- 
tent. Of two fields with the same amount of food, one may 
be very fertile, and the other equally unfruitful, if the food 
is more uniformly distributed throughout the former than the 
latter. 

The common plough breaks and turns up the soil without 
mixing it ; it only displaces, to a certain extent, the spots on 
which plants have already grown. But the spade breaks, 
turns, and mixes it thoroughly. 

A potato, turnip, or wheat plant can not thrive on the spot 



FOOD OF PLANTS NOT IN SOLUTION IN SOILS. 359 

in which the same kind of plant has grown in the preceding 
year, if the portions of soil with which the rootlets were in 
contact, contain no more, or only an insufficient residue of 
food. The roots of the succeeding plants find in all these 
spots either no food or only a deficient supply. Every other 
spot contains more. 

As the smallest portions of food can not of themselves 
leave the spot in which they are held firmly fixed by the soil, 
we can understand what immense influence must be exerted 
on its fertility by its careful mechanical division and thor- 
ough intermixture. 

This is the greatest of all the difficulties which the agri- 
culturist has to overcome. 

If a field is to produce a crop corresponding to the fall 
amount of food present in it, the first and most important 
condition for its accomplishment is, that its physical state be 
such as to permit even the finest rootlets to reach the spots 
where the food is to be found. The extension of the roots 
in every direction must not be obstructed by the cohesion of 
the soil. Plants with thin, delicate roots can not grow on a 
tenacious, heavy soil, even with abundance of mineral food. 
These facts explain in a very simple manner, one of the many 
favorable effects of green manures on such soils, and enable 
us to understand the reasons of the preference given in many 
cases, by agriculturists, to fresh over rotten farm-yard manure. 
The mechanical condition of the ground is, in fact, remark- 
ably altered by the plowing in of plants and their remains. 
A tenacious soil loses thereby its cohesion ; it becomes brittle, 
and more readily pulverized than by the most careful plow- 
ing ; and, in a sandy soil, a certain coherence is introduced 
among its shifting particles. Each stem of the green-manure 
plants plowed in opens up by its decay a road by which the 
delicate rootlets of the wheat plant ramify in all direc- 
tions to seek their food. With the exception of their com- 
bustible elements, the ground receives from the green- 
manure plants nothing which it did not previously contain ; 



360 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

and these of themselves would have no effect on the increase 
of the crop, without the presence in the soil of the necessary 
mineral food. 

None of the three most important constituents of food 
exists, by itself, in a soluble form in the ground, and none of 
the means employed by the agriculturist to make them avail- 
able to his plants, deprives the soil of its power of retaining 
them ; or, if dissolved, of withdrawing them from this solu- 
tion. The principal end gained by the means he employs is 
only a uniform distribution of the food throughout the soil, 
so as to put it within the reach of the roots of his plants. 

A 2^- acre field (=± 1 million square decimetres) of good 
wheat soil produces an average crop of 2000 kilo. (= 4411 
lbs.) of grain, and 5000 kilo. (= 11,028 lbs.) of straw; the 
two contain together 250 kilo. (=551 lbs.) of mineral sub- 
stances. Each square decimetre (==: 10,000 square millime- 
tres or 15.5 square inches) of this field yields 250 milli- 
grammes (== 3.85 grains) of ash constituents to the plants 
growing upon it. Each square millimetre (==. .00155 square 
inch), from the surface downward, must contain a quantity 
of food corresponding to the wants of each individual root- 
let. If the food is wanting in any one particular particle of 
the soil, then this portion can not contribute to the nourish- 
ment of the plant. The amount of food in each portion of a 
transverse section of ground, in each square millimetre from the 
surface downward, is the measure of its capacity for production. 
Each rootlet absorbs, according to its diameter, the food with 
which it comes in contact on its way downward. 

If we suppose that the sectional area of the roots of the 
whole wheat plants which grow on a square decimetre amounts 
to 100 square millimetres, or that upon the same surface there 
exists a wheat plant with two or three stems, and with a hun- 
dred roots each of a square millimetre sectional area, then 
must each of these rootlets receive 2\ milligrammes of mineral 
food in order to supply the plant with 250 milligrammes.' 
Each of the 10,000 square millimetres (= one square deci- 



PRODUCTIVENESS OF SOILS — HOW ESTIMATED. 361 

metre), from the surface downward, must contain these 24- 
milligrammes; which would give a total quantity of 25,000 
milligrammes (=25 grammes = 386 grains) to the square 
decimetre, calculated to a depth of 10 inches ; or 25,000 kilo 
(24J tons) to the hectare (2J acres), i. e., somewhat more 
than -^ per cent, of the whole soil. 

A hectare which, from the surface downward, contains no 
more than 250 kilo. = 550 lbs. of mineral matter (of which 
50 kilo. = 110 lbs. are potash, and 25 kilo. = 55 lbs. are 
phosphoric acid) would, according to this calculation, be com- 
pletely unsuitable for wheat ; for even though each wheat 
plant possessed, instead of one hundred, one thousand roots, 
each of the thickness of a hyacinth root, it would neverthe- 
less not be able to receive by these more than a tenth part of 
its wants from the soil. 

According to our assumption, which probably barely reaches 
the full amount really present, a hectare must contain, from 
the surface downward, in order to yield an average crop of 
wheat, at least 5000 kilo. (= 11,000 lbs.) of potash and 2500 
kilo. (== 5500 lbs.) phosphoric acid.* 

If an average wheat crop of 2000 kilo. (= 4400 lbs.) of 
grain and 5,000 kilo, of straw, has removed one per cent, of 
the mineral food from the soil, the latter remains still pro- 
ductive for new wheat crops in the following years ; but the 
amount of produce diminishes. 

If the soil has by mechanical means been most carefully 
mixed, the wheat plants of the second year on the same field 
will find at each spot one per cent, less food, and the produce 

* If the mineral food, so very small in proportion to the whole mass 
of soil (2 grains in a cubic inch), were present in chemical combination 
with it, it is impossible to form an idea how it could be distributed in 
this state everywhere in the soil, so as to be reached by the roots. The 
comportment of soils of the most different kinds toward solutions of 
these elements, shows that they are present and fixed in a way somewhat 
similar to coloring matter in dyed stuffs, or in charcoal which has 
been used to decolorize a fluid; in these cases a very small quantity in 
weight is sufficient to cover an extraordinary extent of surface. 
31 



362 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

in corn and straw must in the same proportion be smaller. 
Under similar conditions of weather, temperature, and fall of 
rain, only 1980 kilo. (= 4356 lbs.) of grain, and 4950 kilo. 
(= 10,890 lbs.) of straw, will be reaped in the second year; 
and in each following year the crop must fall off in a fixed 
ratio. 

If the crop of wheat removed in the first year 250 kilo, 
(==z 550 lbs.) of mineral constituents, and a hectare (2-J- acres) 
of soil to the depth of 12 inches, contained one hundred 
times this quantity (25,000 kilo., or 24^- tons), there will 
remain in the soil at the end of thirty years of cultivation, 
18,492 kilo. (= 18 tons) of food. 

Whatever then may have been the variations in the amount 
of produce from this field, in the intervening years, caused by 
different conditions of weather, it is evident, that if there has 
been no replacement of the mineral matters removed, there 
can be obtained in the thirty-first year, under the most favor- 
able circumstances, only J|g = 0.74, or somewhat less than 
three-fourths of an average crop. 

If these three-fourths of an average crop do not yield to 
the agriculturist a sufficient excess of income over expendi- 
ture, if they merely cover his expenses, then the crop is no 
longer remunerative. He considers the field to be now ex- 
hausted for wheat crops, although it still contains seventy-four 
times more food than an average crop yearly requires. The 
effect of the total quantity of the mineral food in the soil has 
been, that in the first year each root found in those portions 
of the soil with which it came in contact, the requisite quan- 
tity of these substances for its complete development; and the 
result of the subsequent continuous crops has been, that in 
the thirty-first year only three-fourths of this quantity is found 
in these portions. 

A field exhausted for wheat cultivation, will produce remu- 
nerative crops of rye. 

An average crop of rye (= 1600 kilo., or 3520 lbs. of grain, 
and 3800 kilo., or 8360 lbs. of straw) extracts from the 



REMUNERATIVE CROPS. 363 

ground per hectare only 180 kilo. (= 396 lbs.) of mineral 
matter. Under similar circumstances, one rye plant takes up 
only 180 milligrammes (= 2.77 grains). 

If a soil must contain 25,000 kilo, of mineral matter, in 
order to produce an average crop of wheat, a soil in which 
there are only 18,000 kilo, of the same substance, is rich 
enough for an average crop of rye, and will yield a number of 
such crops which shall be remunerative. 

According to our calculation, a field which is exhausted for 
the cultivation of wheat, still contains 18,492 kilo, of mineral 
matter, which • in their properties are identical with those 
required for rye. 

If we now inquire, after how many years of continuous rye 
cultivation will the average crop fall to one of three-fourths 
the amount, we find — assuming that this amount is no longer 
remunerative — that after twenty-eight remunerative crops, the 
field will be exhausted for the cultivation of rye. The min- 
eral matters still remaining in the ground amount, however, 
to 13,869 kilo. (= 13J tons). 

A field on which rye can no longer be cultivated with profit, 
is not necessarily unsuitable for oats. 

An average crop of oats (2,000 kilo, of grain and 3,000 kilo. 
of straw per hectare) withdraws from the soil 310 kilo. (= 682 
lbs.) of mineral matter, being 60 kilo. (=z 132 lbs.) more than a 
wheat crop, and 130 kilo. (= 286 lbs.) more than a rye crop. 

If the absorbent root surface of the oats were the same as 
that of rye, then oats following rye would not be a remunera- 
tive crop ; for a soil which furnishes 310 kilo, out of a stock 
of 13,869 kilo, for a crop of oats, loses thereby 2.23 per cent, 
of its amount of mineral constituents ; while by our calcula- 
tion the roots of the rye extract only one per cent. This can 
only happen if the root surface of the oats exceeds that of the 
rye 2.23 times. 

According to the above, the oat crops will exhaust the soil 
most rapidly. x\fter 12f years the return of produce must 
sink to three -fourths of its original amount. 



364: THE WHEAT PLANT. 

None of all the causes which may diminish or increase the 
amount of a crop, has any influence on this law of exhaustion 
of the soil by cultivation. "When the sum of the food has 
reached a certain point of diminution, then the soil ceases to 
be productive, in an agricultural sense, for a cultivated plant. 
If by incorporating with it atmospheric food, organic materials 
and salts of ammonia, the produce has been augmented for a 
number of years, the state of exhaustion will then occur sooner. 
On the other hand, any obstacle to the free absorption of food 
diminishes the amount of produce, and the limits of exhaus- 
tion are consequently reached at a later period. 

For each cultivated plant there exists a similar law. 

This state of exhaustion inevitably happens, even when there 
has been withdrawn from the soil by a course of crops only one 
of all the different mineral substances necessary for the nourish- 
ment of plants ; for the one which is awanting, or exists in defi- 
cient quantity, renders all the others inefficient, or deprives them 
of their activity. 

With each crop, each plant, or portion of a plant, taken 
away from a field, the soil loses a portion of the conditions of 
its fertility ; that is, it loses the power of again producing this 
crop, plant, or portion of a plant, after the expiration of a 
number of years of cultivation. A thousand grains of corn 
require from the soil a thousand times as much phosphoric 
acid as one grain ; and a thousand straws, a thousand times as 
much silicic acid as one straw; if, therefore, there is a defi- 
ciency of a thousandth part of the phosphoric or silicic acid 
in the soil, then the thousandth grain and straw will not be 
formed. A single corn straw removed from a cornfield, makes 
this field bear one corn straw less. 

If it is true that the mineral constituents of the culmiferous 
plants are indispensable for their growth, and must be sup- 
plied by the soil, if the plants are to flourish ; if it is true 
that among these mineral matters potash, jihosphoric acid, and 
silicic arid, are not conveyed to the roots in a state of solution, 
then it necessarily follows that a hectare (2^ acres), contain- 



GRADUAL EXHAUSTION OF SOILS. 365 

ing 25,000 kilo. (== 24J tons) of the constituents of the ashes 
of wheat, uniformly distributed through it, and in a state 
quite fit for assimilation by the roots, can to a certain point 
yield a series of remunerative crops of different species of 
straw plants, without any replacement of the minerals re- 
moved in the grain and straw, if a uniform state of mixture 
of the soil has been maintained by careful plowing and other 
suitable means. The succession of such crops is determined 
by this, viz., that the plant cultivated the second year shall 
take away from the soil less than that of the first ; or that it 
contains a greater number of roots, or, in general, a greater 
absorbent root surface than the first. From the average crop 
of the first year, there would be a diminution of produce from 
year to year. 

The agriculturist, to whom uniform average crops are ex- 
ceptions, and varying returns caused by changing states of 
weather is the rule, would most probably not have noticed 
this constant diminution, not even though his field had in 
reality possessed such favorable chemical and physical condi- 
tions as to have enabled him to cultivate on it for seventy 
years successive crops of wheat, rye, and oats, without re- 
placing any of the mineral matters withdrawn from it. 

In favorable years, good crops approaching nearly to an 
average one, would have alternated with bad crops in other 
years, but the proportion of unfavorable to favorable crops 
would have constantly increased. 

The greater number of European fields under cultivation 
do not possess the physical character which has been 
assumed in the case just under consideration. 

In most fields all the phosphoric acid necessary for plants 
is not distributed in the state in which it is readily available 
to the roots. One portion is simply dispersed throughout it 
in the form of little granules of apatite only (phosphate of 
lime), so that even though the soil may altogether contain 
more than a sufficient proportion, yet in its various portions 
there may exist in some too much, in others too little, for the 



366 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

wants of plants. The mechanical preparation of the soil 
would displace these granules, but would not cause their 
thorough distribution and incorporation with it. To effect 
this requires the co-operation of a chemical action. 

After each rye or oat crop there remains in the soil a con- 
siderable quantity of roots, which after one or two years 
entirely disappear. We know that these organic matters have 
undergone decay; that their constituents have united with 
oxygen ; and that the carbon has formed carbonic acid, which 
has accumulated in the air contained in the porous soil, as 
analysis shows us. 

When rain falls on this soil, it dissolves the carbonic acid, 
which thereby acquires the power of taking up phosphate of 
lime. This carbonic acid water does not withdraw from the 
soil the phosphate of lime contained in it, but wherever it 
meets with the granules of apatite or phosphorite, it dissolves 
a certain portion ; for in these granules there exists no cause 
of resistance to the action of the water ; and except the 
cohesion between its own particles, no other extraneous influ- 
ence prevents its solubility in water. 

Under these circumstances, a solution of phosphate of lime 
must consequently be formed, which spreads in all directions 
around each granule. Wherever this solution comes in con- 
tact with soil not already saturated with phosphate of lime, 
the soil will take up and retain a certain portion of this salt. 
The portion of soil now saturated with phosphate will oppose 
no further obstacle to the wider diffusion of the solution. 

The same process is found to take place in the diffusion of 
the silicic acid and potash in the soil, when the latter contains 
silicates which can be decomposed by carbonic acid. There 
is then formed around each particle of silicate a solution of 
silicate of potash, the constituents of which are always again 
fixed, in the first place by the nearest lying, and then by the 
more remote portions of the soil. 

A certain time is required for the distribution of the food 
throughout the soil in the manner above described. 



DISTRIBUTION OF SILICATES THROUGHOUT SOILS. 367 

If we suppose that our field had contained 25,000 kilo, of 
the ash-constituents of wheat, distributed in the most uniform 
manner through it; and in addition to this, but unequally dis- 
tributed, five, ten, or more thousand pounds of the same food, 
the phosphoric acid as apatite, the silicic acid and potash as 
easily decomposed silicates ; — if we further suppose that every 
two years a certain quantity of the last-named substances had 
been rendered soluble, and capable of distribution in the soil 
in the manner above mentioned, and in such proportions that 
the roots should have found every where in the soil these ele- 
ments of food in the same proportions as in preceding years 
of cultivation — a sufficient amount, therefore, for a full aver- 
age crop ; then should we, under these circumstances, have 
obtained during a series of years full average crops, if we had 
interposed a year of fallow between each year of cultivation. 
Instead of thirty constantly-diminishing crops, we should in 
this case have obtained, during a period of sixty years, thirty 
full average crops, if the additional portion of minerals in 
the soil had proved sufficient during that time to replace every 
where the phosphoric and silicic acids, and the potash, re- 
moved annually by the crops. With the exhaustion of the 
additional proportion of minerals in our field, the period of 
diminishing crops would commence ; and the further interpo- 
sition from this time of fallow years would not then exercise the 
slightest influence on the increase of produce. 

In the case under consideration, had the supposed additional 
quantity of phosphoric and silicic acids, and potash, not been 
unequally but uniformly distributed throughout the field, and 
every where completely accessible to the roots of plants, and in 
a state fit for absorption, then thirty full crops would have 
been reaped in thirty successive years, without the interposition 
of a year of fallow. 

Let us return to our field, in which we assumed that there 
were 25,000 kilo, of ash constituents of wheat, thoroughly 
dispersed throughout it, and in a state fit for absorption, and 
that it was sown each year with wheat ; let us now suppose 



368 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

that in each crop the ears only were cut from the straw, and 
that the entire straw was left on the field and immediately 
plowed in ; then must the loss of minerals be less in this year 
than before, for all the constituents of the straw and the leaves 
have remained in the ground ; we have only removed from the 
field the mineral constituents of the grain. 

Among the substances which the straw and leaves have 
obtained from the soil, are found all the constituents of the 
seed, but only in altered proportions. If we express by the 
number 3, the whole phosphoric acid removed by the grain 
and straw together, the loss would be represented by the num- 
ber 2, if the straw remains in the ground. The decrease of 
produce in a field in a succeeding year bears always a definite 
proportion to the loss of mineral substances by the preceding 
crop. The following crop of grain will be a little larger than 
it would have been, had the straw not been left in the ground. 
The produce of straw will be nearly the same as in the pre- 
ceding year, for the conditions for the formation of straw 
have been but slightly altered. 

By thus taking less from the field than formerly, we thereby 
increase the number of remunerative crops, or in other words, 
the total amount of grain produced in the whole series of corn 
crops. A portion of the straw-constituents is converted into 
corn-constituents, and in this form is now removed from the 
soil. The period of exhaustion will always come, but under 
these circumstances it occurs at a later date. The conditions 
for the production of grain go on constantly decreasing, for 
the minerals removed by it have not been replaced. 

This relation would still have remained the same, had the 
cut straw been carted about the field, or been plowed in after 
serving for litter to cattle. What has been supplied to the 
field in this way, had been originally taken from it, and can 
not therefore enrich it. When we reflect that the combustible 
elements of straw are not furnished by the ground, it is clear 
that in leaving the straw in the ground, we really leave only 
the constituents of its ash. The field was thereby enabled to 



DECREASE IN CONDITIONS FOR FORMING GRAIN. 369 

yield a little more than it otherwise would have done, simply 
because less had been taken from it. 

Had we also along with the straw plowed in the grain or its 
ash-constituents; or instead of the wheat grain returned to 
the field a corresponding quantity of another seed, rape-dust 
(that is, rape- seed freed from its fatty oil), which contains the 
same ash-constituents, the composition of the soil would have 
remained the same as before, and the same amount of pro- 
duce would have been obtained as in the preceding year. 

If after each crop, the straw is always returned in this man- 
ner to the field, the further result then is, an inequality in the 
composition of the active constituents of the soil. 

We have assumed that our field contained the mineral mat- 
ters of the whole wheat plant in the right proportions for the 
formation of straw, leaves and grain. By leaving the straw- 
constituents in the soil, while those of the grain were con- 
stantly removed, an increase of the former took place, when 
compared with the proportion of grain-constituents still re- 
maining in the field. The field retained its productiveness 
for straw, but the conditions for the formation of grain de- 
creased. 

The consequence of this inequality is an unequal develop- 
ment of the whole plant. So long as the soil contained and 
supplied, in the proper proportions, all the necessary mineral 
matters for the uniform growth of all parts of the plant, the 
quality of the seed and the proportion between straw and 
grain in the diminishing crops remained uniform and unal- 
tered. But in proportion as the conditions for the formation 
of straw and leaves became more favorable, so did the quality 
of the seed deteriorate as its quantily diminished. The sign 
of this inequality in the composition of the soil, as a conse- 
quence of cultivation, is the diminution in weight of the 
bushel of corn. While at first a certain portion of the con- 
stituents of the returned straw (phosphoric acid, potash, mag- 
nesia) was expended in the formation of grain, at a later 
period the reverse of this takes place, and demands are then 



370 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

made on the grain-constituents (phosphoric acid, potash, 
magnesia) for the formation of straw. We may imagine that 
when there exists in a field this inequality in the conditions 
for the formation of grain and straw, a culmiferous plant may, 
under conditions of temperature and weather favorable for the 
production of leaves, yield an enormous crop of straw with 
empty ears. 

Vine-dressers and gardeners prune trees and vines in order 
to obtain larger fruit and in greater quantity, by thus limit- 
ing the formation of twigs and leaves ; and in many districts, 
as in Lower Bavaria, it is often considered advantageous to 
cut down or feed off the corn when half grown. It is found 
that by this proceeding a larger amount and a better quality 
of grain are obtained. In tropical regions many culmiferous 
plants bear no seed, or but a small quantity, because the soil 
does not contain the proper proportion of conditions for the 
formation of seed and leaf. 

The size of the seed in many plants, is in inverse propor- 
tion to the development of the leaf. Tobacco, poppy, and 
clover have proportionably smaller seeds than the culmiferous 
plants. 

The agriculturist can influence the direction of the vege- 
tative force only through the soil ; that is, through the pro- 
portion of the elements of food which he supplies to it. For 
the production of the largest crop of grain it is requisite that the 
soil contain a preponderating proportion of food necessary for 
the formation of seeds. For turnips, leafy and tuberous plants, 
this condition is reversed. 

An average crop of turnips with leaves contains five times, 
a clover or potato crop twice, as much potash as the grain and 
straw of a wheat crop from an equal surface. A clover and 
a potato crop together remove from two fields of a hectare 
each, as much phosphoric acid as the grain of three wheat 
crops from three fields of the same size. 

It is therefore evident, if we cultivate potatoes and clover on 
our field which contains 25,000 kilo, of the mineral constitu- 



GRAIN AND LEAFY PLANTS. 371 

ents of wheat, and remove the whole produce of tubers and 
clover, that we withdraw from the soil of these two fields as 
much phosphoric acid, and three times as much potash, as by 
three wheat crops. It is certain, that this removal from the 
soil, by another plant, of these important mineral substances, 
produces a great effect on its fertility for wheat; the yield and 
the number of the wheat crops diminish. 

If, on the other hand, during a period of two years, we 
had cultivated on the field, wheat in the first year, and pota- 
toes in the second, and had plowed in the whole of the 
potato crop and the wheat straw, and had continued to do this 
for sixty years, we should not by these means have in the 
least degree altered or augmented the produce in grain, which 
the field was capable of yielding. The field has neither 
acquired nor lost anything by the cultivation of potatoes, for 
these were always left in the field. When the grain crops 
taken from the field have diminished the store of mineral 
matters to f of their original quantity, then this field ceases 
to furnish a remunerative crop, if j- of an average return no 
longer yield any profit to the agriculturist. We arrive at the 
same results, if, instead of potatoes, we had interposed crops 
of clover, and had in the same way each year plowed it in. 
We have assumed that the physical condition of the soil was 
most favorable, and consequently, could not be improved by 
incorporating with it the organic matters of the clover and 
potatoes. Even had we removed the potatoes from the field, 
mown and dried the clover, and then carted the potatoes and 
hay back to the field, or made them first pass through the 
cattle stalls, or made any other use of them ; had we in this 
way returned to the field the whole sum of mineral matters 
in both crops, we should not by all these operations have 
produced from it in thirty, sixty, or seventy years, a single 
grain more than would have been obtained without all these 
changes. During this whole period the conditions for the 
production of grain have not increased, but the cause of de- 
crease in the crops has remained the same. 



372 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The plowing in of the potatoes and clover could produce 
a beneficial effect only on those fields, in which a favorable 
physical state did not exist ; or in which the mineral matter 
was unequally distributed, and was partly inaccessible to the 
roots of plants. But an action of this kind is just the same 
as that of green manuring, or of one or more years of fallow. 

By the incorporation with the soil of the clover and or- 
ganic substances, the amount of decaying matters and of 
nitrogen in it is increased from year to year. All that these 
plants received from the atmosphere remained in the ground, 
but the enriching of the soil with these otherwise useful 
matters can not effect the production of more grain than 
formerly ; for this depends on the proportion of the minerals 
in the soil, and these have not been increased, but on the 
contrary, have constantly decreased, in consequence of the 
removal of the corn. By the increase of nitrogen, and of 
decaying organic matter in the soil, the produce might pos- 
sibly be augmented for a number of years, but the period at 
which such land would no longer produce a remunerative 
crop, occurs in such circumstances only so much the more 
quickly. 

If we cultivate on three different wheat fields respec- 
tively, wheat, potatoes, and clover, and plows all the potatoes 
and clover yielded by the other two into the wheat field, 
from which the grain alone is removed, we shall by these 
means render the latter more fertile than before, for we have 
enriched it by the whole amount of minerals which the pota- 
toes and clover had extracted from the other two fields. It 
has received three times as much phosphoric acid, and twenty 
times as much potash, as the grain has carried away. 

This wheat field will now be able to produce in three suc- 
cessive years, three full grain crops; for the conditions for 
the production of straw have remained unchanged, while 
those for corn have been increased threefold. If the agri- 
culturist in this manner ra ^es in three years as much corn 
as he would have done in five on the same fields, without the 



PROGRESSIVE EXHAUSTION OF THE SOIL. 373 

co-operation of the mineral constituents of the clover and 
potatoes, then has liis profit now evidently become greater, for 
he has reaped with the seed for three crops as much as he 
would have done in the other case, with the seed for Jive. 
But the other two fields have lost in fertility as much as the 
wheat field has gained ; and the final result is, that with less 
cost of cultivation and with more profit than before, the agri- 
culturist has in his three fields anticipated the period of ex- 
haustion which would inevitably have overtaken them by the 
continued withdrawal in grain of the mineral constituents of 
the soil. 

The last case that we have to consider is, when the agri- 
culturist, instead of potatoes and clover, cultivates turnips 
and lucerne, which, by means of their long and deep pene- 
trating roots, extract a large quantity of mineral matter from 
the subsoil, which is not reached by the greater number of 
the roots of the cereals. Where the fields possess a subsoil, 
favorable to the growth of these plants, we double, as it- 
were, the extent of surface capable of cultivation. If the 
roots of these plants received the half of their mineral matters 
from the subsoil, and the other half from the arable soil, the 
latter will lose by the crops only half so much as they would 
have done, had the whole of the mineral food for these crops 
been obtained from the arable soil alone. 

The subsoil, considered in the light of a field apart from 
the arable soil, thus furnishes to the turnip and lucerne crops, 
a certain quantity of mineral matter. If we suppose that in 
harvest the whole of the turnip and lucerne crops had been 
plowed under in the wheat-field, which had yielded an av- 
erage crop of grain, and in this way as much and more min- 
eral matter had been returned than the grain had removed; 
then by these means, this wheat-field can be maintained at the 
same degree of fertility at the expense of the subsoil, just so long 
as the latter continues productive for turnips and lucerne. 

But since turnips and lucerne require for their growth a 



374 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

very large quantity of mineral matter, the subsoil will be the 
sooner exhausted, in proportion to the smaller quantity of 
these substances it contains. Now, as the subsoil is not in 
reality separated from the arable soil, but lies beneath it, it 
can scarcely receive back any of the substances it has lost, 
because the arable soil retains that portion of them which has 
been added to it. It is only that part of the potash, ammo- 
nia, phosphoric, and silicic acids, which has not been taken 
up and fixed by the surface soil that can penetrate to the sub- 
soil. 

By the cultivation of these deep-rooting plants, super- 
abundance of food can consequently be obtained for all those 
which derive their nourishment chiefly from the surface soil. 
This supply will not, however, be of any duration ; for, in a 
comparatively short time, many fields will cease to produce 
these plants, because the subsoil is exhausted, and its fertility 
is only restored with difficulty. In the first place, lucerne no 
longer grows, and turnips are only now produced in so far as 
they are able to obtain their full supply of minerals from the 
surface soil. Potatoes, which derive their supplies from the 
upper layers of the surface soil, endure the longest. 

The quantity of food which a plant receives from the ground 
is not alone dependent on the quantity which is present in 
the finest particles of the surface soil, but also on the number 
of organs which extract this food from the ground. Two 
roots will obtain twice as much as one. 

The crop is partly dependent on the first root formation. 

A grain of wheat or barley contains within itself so large a 
quantity of food, that it stands in no need of the soil in the 
first period of its growth. The seeds of these plants when 
simply moistened, produce ten or more rootlets from six to 
eight lines in length. The heavier the grain, the stronger 
and more vigorous is the formation of roots. The seed corn, 
without receiving any thing from the ground, extends in all 
directions its organs of absorption, by which it procures its 



FOOD ABSORBED PROPORTIONAL TO ROOT SURFACE. 375 

food from a comparatively great distance. Hence the agricul- 
turist attaches great importance to the careful selection of 
seed. 

Small seeds, such as those of tobacco, poppy, and clover, 
require a richer or more thoroughly prepared surface soil, to 
prevent the loss of a large proportion ; because the soil in 
the immediate neighborhood of the seed must at once supply 
it with food after germination. Hence, as the agriculturists 
say, such plants are more difficult to raise. 

The seeds of the cereals may be compared to a hen's egg, 
which contains within itself all the necessary elements for 
the development of the young animal. Husbandry would 
certainly assume quite another form, if for every single cereal 
plant, as many seeds should be lost, as is the case with pop- 
pies, tobacco, and even clover. 

The quantity of food which a plant obtains from one and the 
same soil is in proportion to its absorbent root surface. Of 
two species of plants which require the same quantity and a 
similar relation of mineral food, the one icith double extent of 
root surface takes up double the quantity of food. 

If it is true that the constituents of the ash of plants are in- 
dispensable to their life and growth, it is evident that what- 
ever else may exert a favorable influence on their growth, 
must be subordinate to the law, that the soil, in order to be 
fertile in an agricultural sense for a cultivated plant, must 
contain the constituents of the ash in sufficient quantity, and 
in a state the most suitable for absorption. 

The agriculturist has to do with the soil alone ; it is only 
through it that he is able to exercise an immediate influence 
on plants. The attainment of all his objects in the most 
complete and profitable manner, pre-supposes the exact knowl- 
edge of the effective chemical conditions for the life of plants 
in the soil; it further pre-supposes, perfect acquaintance with 
the food of plants, and the source from which it is derived, 
as well as with the means for rendering the soil suitable for 



376 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

their nutrition, combined with experience and skill in em- 
ploying them in the proper w.iy, and at the right time. 

It is evident from the above statement that the cultivation 
of plants tends to drain or to render a fertile soil unproduc- 
tive. In the produce of his fields, destined for the food of 
man and beasts, the agriculturist sends away that portion of 
the active ingredients of his soil which contributes to the 
growth of this very produce. The fertility of his fields con- 
tinuously diminishes, \Hlatever may be the plants he culti- 
vates or the rotation he adopts. The export of his produce 
is nothing else than a spoliation of his soil of the conditions 
for its reproduction. 

A field is not exhausted for corn, clover, tobacco, and tur- 
nips, so long as it still yields remunerative crops without re- 
quiring restoration of the minerals which are removed. It is 
exhausted from the moment that the hand of man is needed to 
restore it to the failing conditions of its fertility. The great 
majority of our cultivated fields are in this sense exhausted. 

The life of men, of animals, and of plants, is connected in 
the closest manner with the return of all the conditions which 
promote the vital process. The soil by its constituents con- 
tributes to the life of plants ; its continuous fertility is incon- 
ceivable and impossible without the return of those conditions 
which have rendered it productive. 

The mightiest stream, which sets in motion thousands of 
mills and machines, fails, if the streams and brooks run dry 
which supply it with water ; and these streams and brooks in 
their turn dry up, if the myriads of little drops of which 
they consist do not return in the form of rain to those spots 
from which they have their source. 

A field which has lost its fertility by the successive cultiva- 
tion of different plants, acquires by the application of farm- 
yard manure, the power of producing a new series of crops of 
the same plants. 

But what is farm-yard manure, and whence is its origin ? 



THE NATUHE OF MANURE. 377 

The land of the husbandman is the source of all this manure. 
Manure consists of the straw which has served for litter, of 
the remains of plants, and of the fluid and solid excrement 
of man and animals. The excrement is derived from the 
food. 

In the bread which a man daily receives, he consumes the 
ash-constituents of the seeds of the cereals whose flour has 
served for the preparation of the bread ; in flesh, the ash- 
constituents of flesh. 

The flesh of herbivorous animals, as well as its ash consti- 
tuents, are derived from plants. These ash-constituents are 
identical with those of the seeds of leguminous plants; so 
that if a whole animal were burnt, the residual ash would not 
differ from that of beans, peas, and lentils. 

In bread and flesh, man consequently consumes the mineral 
matters of seeds, or of the constituents of seeds, which the 
agriculturist obtains from his land in the form of flesh. 

But a very small fraction of the large amount of mineral 
substances received by man in his food during a lifetime 
remains in his body. The body of an adult does not increase 
in weight from day to day ; it therefore follows, that all the 
constituents of his food have passed again completely out of 
his body. Chemical analysis demonstrates that the ash of 
bread and of flesh exists in his excrement very nearly in the 
same quantity as in his food. The comportment of the food 
in his body is just the same as if it had been burnt in a fur- 
nace. The urine contains the soluble, and the faeces the in- 
soluble mineral matters ; the bad smelling ingredients are 
the smoke and soot of an incomplete combustion. With 
these are also mingled the undigested and indigestible remains 
of food. 

The excrement of swine fed on potatoes contains the ash- 
constituents of potatoes ; that of the horse, the mineral mat- 
ters of hay and oats; that of cattle, the ash of turnips, clover, 
etc., which have served for their food. Farm-yard manure 
consists of a mixture of all these excrements together. 
32 



378 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

By farm-yard manure, the fertility of a field which has 
been exhausted by cultivation, is completely restored. This 
is a fact which the experience of thousands of years has es- 
tablished. In farm-yard manure the field receives a certain 
quantity of organic, that is, combustible matter, and the ash- 
constituents of the consumed food. We have now to consider 
what part was played by the organic and inorganic matter in 
this restoration of fertility. 

The most superficial examination of a cultivated field shows, 
that all the combustible matter of plants which are reaped 
from the field are derived from the air, and not from the soil. 

If the carbon of only a portion of the vegetable matter in 
the crop were derived from the soil, it is perfectly clear, that 
if the latter contained at first a certain amount of this element 
before the harvest, this quantity must become smaller after 
each crop. A soil poor in organic matter would be less pro- 
ductive than one in which it is abundant. 

Observation, however, shows, that a field under continued 
cultivation does not in consequence become poorer in organic 
or combustible matter. The soil of a meadow, which during 
ten years has yielded a thousand cwt. of hay per hectare, is 
not, after this period, poorer, but richer in organic substances. 
A clover field, after a crop, retains in the roots remaining in 
the soil more organic matter, and more nitrogen than it or- 
iginally possessed ; but it has become unproductive for clover, 
and yields no longer a remunerative crop. 

A wheat or potato field is in like manner, after a crop, not 
poorer than before in organic matter. In general the soil is 
enriched by cultivation with combustible constituents, but its fer- 
tility nevertheless steadily diminishes. After a number of con- 
secutive remunerating crops of corn, turnips and clover, these 
plants are found to flourish no longer on the same soil. 

Since, then, the presence of decaying organic matter in a soil, 
does not in the slightest degree retard or arrest its exhaustion by 
cultivation, it is impossible that an increase of these substances 
can restore the lost capacity for production. 



FARM- YARD MANURE. 379 

In fact by incorporating with the soil of a field completely 
exhausted, boiled saw-dust, or salts of ammonia, or both to- 
gether, we can not restore to it the power of yielding a second 
or third time the same series of crops. If these substances 
improve the physical character of the soil, they will exercise 
a favorable influence on the produce ; but after all, their 
action still consists in accelerating the exhaustion, and ren- 
dering it more complete. 

Farm-yard manure, however, restores thoroughly the power 
of producing the same series of crops, a second, third, or a 
hundred times. It arrests fully, according to the quantity 
employed, the state of exhaustion ; its application may render 
a field more fertile ; in many cases more so than it ever has 
been. 

The restoration of fertility by farm- yard manure can not 
have been caused by the presence of combustible matters 
(carbonaceous and nitrogenous substances). If these pro- 
duced- any good effects, they were of a subordinate nature. 
The action of farm-yard manure depends most undoubtedly on 
the amount of the incombustible ash-constituents of plants in it, 
and is determined by these. 

In the farm-yard manure the field received back in fact a 
certain quantity of all the minerals which had been withdrawn 
by the crops. The decrease in its fertility stood in exact re- 
lation with the removal and the restoration of the fertility 
with the restitution of these mineral substances. 

The incombustible elements of cultivated plants do not of 
themselves return to the soil like the combustible in the atmos- 
pheric sea from which they are derived. By the hand of man 
alone are the conditions of the life of plants given back to 
the soil. By farm-yard manure, in which these conditions 
are fulfilled, the agriculturist, as if by a law of nature, re- 
stores to his field its lost powers of production. 

A rational practice maintains the circulation of all the 
conditions of life ; and empirical practice breaks the chain 
which binds man to his home, by robbing the soil of one con- 



380 the wheat plant. 

dition after another of its fertility. Though the empiric 
knows that the soil is different to-day from what it was yes- 
terday, he nevertheless believes that it will be to-morrow what 
it is to-day. Founding on the experience of yesterday, he 
teaches that the fertile soil is inexhaustible ; but science, 
guided by taws, shows that the productiveness even of the 
most fertile soil, has its end, and that the very soil which 
appears inexhaustible, is exhausted. Because nature was kind 
and gave abundantly to the father, the empiric thinks that the 
son may also take abundantly and without any care for the 
future. On the fact that man has a home, and that the spot 
of earth, from which he toils with the sweat of his brow to 
gain his subsistence, is his home, depends the development of 
the human race. The continuance of his existence in his 
home is dependent on the law, that force is expended by use 
and maintained by supply. 

[ We add a paper on that particular modification of .Tull's 
method of wheat cultivation, which is due to the Rev. S. 
Smith, of Lois-Weedon, Northamptonshire, England, in order 
to prove that the great thing to be done in farming is to pul- 
verize the soil — that a poor soil well pulverized is as produc- 
tive as a good soil indifferently managed. That the principles 
of Tull were sound, as far as they went, there is now no reason 
to question. But because they halted when they should have 
gone forward, and because the details of the practice which Tull 
found indispensable for duly carrying his principles out, were a 
bar to the attainment of such an amount of produce as would 
satisfy the just demands of the farmer, his special husbandry 
for the growth of wheat, with the exception of a few experi- 
ments here and there, soon died away. For, a close and care- 
ful examination of the only continuous and authenticated 
balance sheets which are in existence, of average crops of 
wheat grown on Tull's plan, or on any modification of it, by 
his best disciples, such as De Chateauvieux and Du Hamel, or 
in the clever experiments in Yorkshire, reported in the Ap- 



HOW TO GROW WHEAT WITH PROFIT. 381 

pendix to Mill's Husbandry, will discover a result of less than 
sixteen bushels per acre, while the blind and unauthorized 
reliance of that system on organic food alone, for the support 
of the plant, must have led, more or less speedily, to utter 
exhaustion of the land and total failure. The broad distinc- 
tion, then, between Tull's system of growing wheat and that 
proposed by Mr. Smith, and carried out at Lois-Weedon, is 
this, that by certain alterations in practice, the latter has, 
without manure, raised the average produce from sixteen to 
thirty-four, and that he is enabled, by the principles on which 
that change of practice is founded, to insure on wheat lands, 
that is, on the great majority of clay and heavy loam, a suffi- 
ciency of every element of fertility, inorganic as well as 
organic, for an indefinite succession of wheat crops on the 
same acre of land. 

The process by which the scheme is carried out, is a very 
simple one, and is given in detail in his pamphlet, entitled 
"A Word in Season, or How to Grow Wheat with Profit." 
Briefly, it is this : " I divide my field," says the author, " into 
lands five feet wide, in the center of each land I drop or drill 
my seed in triple rows, one foot apart, thus leaving a fallow in- 
terval of three feet between each triple row. When the plant- 
is up I trench the intervals with a fork, easily taking my 
spits about three inches from the wheat, and at spring and 
during summer, I clean them with the blades of the sharp 
cutting-horse hoe, and keep them open with the tines of scuf- 
fles. Every year, in fact, I trench and cultivate two and a 
half feet out of the five for the succeeding crop, and leave the 
other two and a half for that which is growing. One moiety 
of each acre is thus in fallow, and the other moiety wheat, and 
the average yield is thirty-four bushels, grown without diffi- 
culty or danger in the execution, and surpassing the yield of 
a whole acre on the common plan. It will here be seen at a 
glance how I differ from Tull in practice ; how the fork takes 
the place of the plow, and does better work on a narrower 
compass ; how the fallow is reduced from four-fifths of the 



382 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

land to only one-half, and how in consequence the produce 
is more than doubled at once." 

With regard to the number of rows of wheat, Tull. ended 
with two. " Upon experience," he says, a I find the double 
row much preferable to the triple." The principal reason for 
this preference was, that he found the middle row inferior to 
the outside rows, which stood nearer to the pulverized inter- 
vals ; and, certainly, on Tull's plan, the middle row always 
will be inferior, for his rule was never to go below the staple. 
And so, in some slight degree, will it be at the outset on 
Mr. Smith's plan, till the soil is not only dug but pulverized 
from fourteen to twenty inches deep ; because till then the 
roots of the middle row are unable, with ease, to reach the 
intervals, after passing beneath the roots of the outer rows. 
Accomplish that depth, and there will be no difference between 
them. So Mr. Smith has found it, in his early piece of deep- 
tilled wheat, and so Tull asserts in his 11th chapter: "Where 
any inner or middle row has a competent number of plants, 
standing on a competent thickness of sufficiently pulverized 
earth, and its outside row the same, whereunto the hoe-plow 
has gone deep and very neat, such middle rows equal the out- 
side row. But where any of these circumstances are wanting, 
the middle row falls short more or less^ in proportion as more 
or fewer of them are wanting." The reasons against only two 
rows, according to Mr. Smith, are, that without the "alloy" 
of the middle row they would become too luxuriant from 
excess of food, and especially because the more frequent 
recurrence of the fallow interval would, in all probability, 
greatly reduce the bulk of the crop. In favor of the double 
row, is the greater ease with which the growing crop can be 
cleaned. 

Such, in brief, are the details of the practice at Lois- 
Weedon ; and considered only as mere mechanical operations 
on the soil, they are perfect in their tendency to promote 
healthy vegetation in the plant. But, while the free exposure 
of the rows to the influence of the sun and air is thus emi- 



PULVERIZATION OF THE SOIL. 383 

nently conducive to the health and vigor of each separate 
plant, and while this process of disintegration of the clods 
of the earth enables the roots to penetrate the soil with ease, 
in search of their food, the fallow intervals brought into this 
state of cultivation are actually providing the food itself. 
For it does not appear to admit of a doubt, in the present 
state of chemical investigation and analysis, that, supposing 
the staple of wheat land — the clay and loamy soils spoken of 
by Mr. Smith — to be exhausted, there is underneath the 
staple, in the subsoil of such land, a supply of inorganic 
food for the plant, which, even at a depth easily attainable by 
the implement of cultivation, is practicably inexhaustible. 

Bring up by degrees, then, a portion of this subsoil as it is 
required ; bring up before winter, and lay rough on the sur- 
face, just so much, and so much only, as can be decomposed 
and mellowed by the annual alternate fallow, and the process 
will render soluble a supply of mineral substances adequate 
to the demand of each alternate crop. Nor does it now seem 
doubted that the atmosphere contains a sufficiency of every 
organic ingredient which is required by the wheat plant. 
And here again, is displayed that harmony which runs through 
and accompanies each process of the plan. For when the 
clay or loamy soil has thus been deepened and pulverized, 
and so far enriched, it is filtered for its other important office; 
it has become a retentive absorbent of the riches of the atmos- 
phere, which drop unrepelled into its bosom, and are there 
reserved, either for the use of the growing plant, or to accu- 
mulate for the succeeding crop. There are yet other collateral 
advantages, of great and acknowledged importance, attending 
this pulverized depth of soil between the rows of the growing 
wheat. For in the driest season, it holds a never-failing 
supply of necessary moisture for the plant, and in the wettest 
year it enables all injurious moisture to filter and drain away. 
The result of this scheme of wheat-growing has been an aver- 
age produce of about thirty-four bushels per acre, dating 
back from this present July, 1854 ; the scheme was com- 



384 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

rnenced, between nine and ten years ago, with hand-labor, 
alone, on a small portion of a field, under all the disadvan- 
tages of being fresh broken up. For so far from that being 
a profitable condition for land in wheat — on this plan at 
least — it is positively injurious, tending, as it does, to over- 
luxuriance, and its frequently fatal effect. For the first five 
years the average outlay w r as as follows : 

One double digging, £1 10 

Two single diggings, 1 00 

Pressing, sowing, hoeing, carrying, thrashing, rates 

and taxes, 2 60 

Two pecks of seed, 2 6 

Rent, 2 



Outlay, , £6 18 6 

Of the first year's produce and profit no account was taken ; 
but for the following years the average yield was thirty-four 
bushels. 

34 bushels of wheat (40s.), £8 10 

1 ton 12 cwt. of straw (40s.), 8 40 

Produce, £11 14 

Deduct outlay, 6 18 6 



Net profit with wheat at 40 s., £5 6. 

■ 

This straw is introduced into the account, since it is clearly 
as much the produce of the soil as the grain itself. And it is 
charged as profit, because on this plan — unlike the ordinary 
mode of farming — it is not returned to the wheat field in the 
shape of manure. As a question beyond a doubt, therefore, 
the produce of the straw is to be taken like the grain, and 
charged at its value. " That value to myself is clear," says 
the author, " for I purchase straw, and charge for it at the 
price I give. The value also to my neighbor who farms on 
my plan, is clear, for he sells it. The value to others will 
vary ; but take the judgment of any three intelligent farmers : 
tell them their opinion will be published, and their names 



EFFECTS OF OVER-LUXURIANCE. 385 

given : and when they have well considered its use, either as 
chaff or as litter, and then manure, it will be found, I appre- 
hend, that their decision as to its value, to those good farmers 
who do not sell their straw, will differ but little from those 
who do." 

This, then, was the first stage of the scheme, when all the 
operations on the land were performed by hand-labor alone. 
But it was objected that, however successful this plan of grow- 
ing wheat might be, it was only success on a very small scale ; 
and that the plan, therefore, was valueless as a model for the 
farmer. It was objected, too, that as the crops were taken 
from land lately brought under tillage, as a criterion of the 
plan, they were inapplicable and useless. But, if Mr. Smith's 
principles are sound, the latter objection is evidently futile. 
For if the subsoil of wheat land contain an inexhaustible 
supply of inorganic food, and the atmosphere provides a suf- 
ciency of organic matter for the wheat plant, nothing more is 
required. Nay, if the land be full. of nourishment in itself, 
and to this be added that competent and continuous provision 
from above, the fear is, in reality, surfeit and sickness to the 
crop from over-feeding. In common farming, what is more 
difficult in the growth of wheat than to hit the point between 
parsimony and profusion? And, with our variable climate, 
how true to general experience are the telling words of our 
cautious and far-seeing instructor in agriculture, that " if wheat 
be over-fed in a wet season, it goes down, or in a dry, cold 
May, it is mildewed?" "Last August (1849)," says Mr. 
Pusey, " I observed beyond mistake, on a close examination, 
that the better the land the more the wheat was mildewed ; 
the better farmed was the same land, the more was it also 
mildewed." 

In order, however, to try the soundness of the two objec- 
tions referred to, and to put them to the intelligible and un- 
erring test of practice, the author states that he took in hand 
a four-acre field, exactly suited to his purpose : for it was 
what is usually deemed exhausted. It had never known a 
33 



386 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

bare fallow in the memory of man. Four years before it had 
been manured for Swedes, which were carted off the land. It 
had no dressing for the three following crops, the rotation 
having ended with a crop of wheat sown broadcast. Tn this 
condition, the stubble standing, he entered upon the field in 
October, 1S50. He then simply plowed the field an inch 
deeper than it had ever been plowed before, cleaned and lev- 
eled it, and so without further preparation, got in his seed. 
After this, on the first appearance of the plant above ground, 
lie sent in his spadesman to trench the intervals two shallow 
spits deep, for a fallow for the succeeding crop. The produce 
from the four acres was twenty-one and a half quarters of 
Bristol red wheat ; and when it had been disposed of, the 
result in outlay and profit, with wheat at 40s., was found to 
be this : 

Paid for plowing (Gs. the half portion of each of the four 

acres), £ 1 4 

Harrowing, leveling, and cleaning the foul stubble (10s. 

ditto), '. 2 

Pressing the channels for the seed (Is.), '4 

Dropping the seed into the chaunels hy hand (5s.), 1 

Four pecks and one gallon of seed (5s. per busheij, 5 7-£ 

Rolling (6d.), 2 o" 

Hoeing between the rows (3s.), scarifying the intervals 

(3s.), bird-keeping (4s.), 2 

Reaping (9s.), carrying to barn and unloading (Gs.), 3 

Thrashing and winnowing 20^ quarters (at 2s. lljd.), 3 0} 

Rates and taxes (4s. 8d.), and interest on £20, for outlay, 

implements, etc., 1 lb 8 

Total outlay, £14 14 G 

20| quarters of clean wheat (40s.), £35 17 G 

8 tons of straw (40s.), 16 

Gross produce, £51 17 6 

Deduct outlay, 14 14 6 

Total amount of profit to proprietor, £37 3 0. 



HAND LABOR INDISPENSABLE. ob7 

" The result, then," says the author, " may be stated thus : 
One moiety of each of these four acres in wheat, and the other 
moiety fallow — the land exhausted — no manure — little more 
than a peck of seeds to each half acre — and yet the yield 20J 
quarters. I very respectfully ask the farmer's attention to 
these facts ; and would bid him reflect, that there is nothing 
whatever in the operations which were so successful here, to 
prevent their application elsewhere." 

This is the second stage of the scheme, in which the greater 
economy of horse-power is introduced, and the hand-labor 
confined to the usual hoeings and the trenching before win- 
ter. For hand-labor can nol be dispensed with altogether at 
present; since no implement at present can trench. Nothing 
but the spade or the fork has yet been found able, within the 
limited space of thirty inches, to turn up the subsoil from the 
required depth, and place it uppermost, in such a form as to 
receive the full benefit of the frosts of winter and the scorch- 
ings of summer ; that exposure of the subsoil is indispensa- 
ble, providing as it does the necessary and never-failing sup- 
ply of inorganic manure for the wheat crop. 

There is yet a third stage in prospect to accomplish the 
digging and the burning up of the subsoil by machinery. 
This would certainly increase the profits of the scheme, by 
reducing very considerably the expense of cultivation, and 
would relieve the mind from the fear of the want of hands; 
a fear, however, not entertained by the author himself, though 
many alluring outlets have been opened for the superabundant 
labor of the country. 

After the foregoing statement, little need be said of the 
profitableness of the scheme itself: for if out of an arable 
farm of 400 acres, 100 acres be set apart for wheat on this 
plan, and, with wheat at 40s., the profits of these 100 acres, at 
a gain of £5 per acre net, be £500 to the renting farmer, 
the thing speaks for itself. 

The remaining 300 acres — supposing them to be farmed on 
the common plan of rotations — would tell their own tale, and 



388 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

if they told it truly, they could scarcely be silent on the sub- 
ject of that unneed straw from the 100 acres of wheat. The 
advantage of having on the spot say 150 tons of straw, 
although accounted for at its value, would be acknowledged 
by them at once. 

Such is the profitable scheme of wheat-growing proposed 
by Mr. Smith, and carried out at Lois-Weedon ; but, emi- 
nently profitable as it is, it is quite clear from the details, 
that very great nicety of cultivation is required in order to 
insure success. So precise, in fact, are the conditions, that 
on the first two years of trial, in various parts of the country, 
several signal failures have taken place. To say, however, 
that much care, and much attention, and much energy, are 
all in requisition here, is only to assert a recognized law of 
nature, that nothing eminently good is ever attained but by 
strenuous exertion. To pulverize the trenched soil, to keep 
it clean, to sow early, are all indispensable to entire success ; 
and it is unfortunate that the two untoward seasons during 
which these two successful trials were made, were less dusty, 
more uncleanly, and less fitted for early sowing, than were 
probably ever known in the memory of man. Still there 
were some experimenters who, bad as was the sticking place, 
screwed their courage to it, and did not fail, and the author 
of the scheme declares, with the utmost sincerity, that " he 
never knew an unsuccessful case where he knew the conditions 
of the scheme had been strictly carried out."" 



MEDIUM SOIL TO BE SELECTED. 389 






CHAPTER XVI. 

MANAGEMENT OP SOILS. 

There is no doubt that the culture of wheat is annually 
becoming more and more precarious in Ohio. Notwithstand- 
ing there are great improvements made in agricultural imple- 
ments and machinery, and these generally well distributed 
throughout the State ; yet the products per acre, do not in- 
crease in proportion to the amount expended for machinery 
and labor. It is evident then that our soils are manifesting 
indications of less fertility than in former years. The great 
question in Ohio is what shall be done to retain even the 
present condition or state of fertility, and if possible increase 
it ? The man who will furnish to the farmers in Ohio a prac- 
tical solution of this problem — who will inform them how it 
may be accomplished, by incurring a very slight expense, or 
such expenditure as the small farmers can readily afford, may 
well be regarded as a benefactor to our agricultural com- 
munity. 

It is by no means certain that farmers always select the 
lands best adapted to the growth of wheat, for the culture of 
that plant. Instances are not wanting where the attempt has 
been made for a number of successive years to grow wheat, on 
soils not adapted to it. The attempts have invariably result- 
ed in disappointment to the grower. 

Soils of a medium quality should be selected. Those 
which are too rich, such as the black mold, or black sandy 
soils of the river and creek banks, or low places, should never 
be selected for wheat. They are unquestionably better adapt- 
ed for corn and potatoes. The soils on " bottom lands " as 
they are generally termed, consist in too great a degree of 
organic matter — of humus, and decaying or decayed vegetable 



390 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

matter, to grow wheat to any advantage to the grower. They 
lack the proper earthy materials, or if they possess them, they 
are not in a proper chemical condition for the purposes of the 
plant. It is a generally admitted fact, that on such soils the 
wheat grows very rank, producing straw of enormous growth, 
but the heads are invariably small, even of the best varieties 
of wheat, and produce very few and indifferent grains of 
wheat. Aside from this, wheat grown on low places is more 
liable to suffer from frosts, mildew, rust and insects, than that 
grown upon higher grounds ; it is also as a general thing 
much more liable to fall or lodge than that on more elevated 
places. 

The best lands for wheat are those in which the principal 
ingredient is clay, — either red, yellow or white, of which the 
white however, is always the poorest. There is no doubt that 
more labor must be expended on a pure clay soil than on al- 
most any other ; yet when properly managed it yields more 
uniformly, and yields larger crops of wheat than any other 
soil. The first thing to be done after clearing a piece of clay 
soil, is, to have it thoroughly drained, before it is '• broke up." 
Clay retains more moisture than any other kind of soil ; but 
when it loses its moisture, it becomes drier and harder than 
any other. A new clay will shrink or contract fully one sixth 
in sun-drying or " baking " ; it is easy to imagine what effect 
this shrinkage will have upon the tender rootlets 'of the 
plants. K 

Lime in considerable quantities should be applied on new 
clay lands, to neutralize the excess of acidity with which they 
are almost universally impregnated. Straw, or barn-yard 
manure can not be too plentifully plowed in, on such lands — 
not for the purpose of acting as manures, but as a means of 
converting the clay into a loam. Lime, straw, or barn -yard 
manure if plentifully applied, will also prevent the soil from 
baking, because the introduction of any foreign substance 
between the particles of clay prevents the latter from cohering. 
It is very evident that the oftener the soil is stirred, the more 



FREQUENT PT.OV,' I N( IS NECESSARY. .'lOl 

reduced in size \vill the particles become. If a piece of new 
ground is plowed four times in succession, it is reasonable to 
suppose that the particles of its soil are four times as much 
reduced, and that barn-yard manure or straw is four times as 
thoroughly incorporated as that which has been plowed once 
only. 

The Roman farmers in olden times plowed their wheat 
lands from six to eight? times before seeding, and they seldom 
or never failed in being fully rewarded by the more abundant 
crop for their additional labor. Tradition says that the 
ancient Egyptians seldom or never plowed their wheat lands 
less than six times. 

It is very evident that every time the earth is broken by 
any sort of tillage, new surfaces of the soil become exposed, 
not only to the atmosphere, but to the action of the roots of 
the plant. Now it is this new surface from which the plant 
obtains or elaborates its food, as is proved by the fact that no 
plant will grow in precisely the same place where a similar 
plant grew before. In a peach orchard, the old trees were 
removed and young ones put in the precise spot occupied by 
the old ones — they died in the third year, apparently without 
cause; but when planted on the intermediate spaces, between 
the old trees, they grew luxuriantly, and bore excellent crops 
of fruit. Twenty successive good crops of wheat may be 
grown on the same soil, " provided ei.hottys" as the attorneys 
say, that each new crop has new surfaces of soil to act upon. 
This fact was well understood by Jcthro Tull, more than one 
hundred years ago. Mr. Tull was the inventor of the first 
drill, and one part of his work is a treatise on making and 
using drills and plows, and horse hoes. 

In his chapter on " Tillage " he says : 

"Tillage is beneficial to all sorts of land. Light land be- 
ing naturally hollow, has larger pores, which are the cause of 
its lightness. This, when it is by any means sufficiently 
divided, the parts being brought nearer together, becomes for 
a time, bulk for bulk heavier, i. c, the same quantity will be 



392 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

contained in less room, and so is made to partake of the 
nature and benefits of strong land, via., to keep out too much 
heat and cold, and the like. 

" But strong land being naturally less porous, is made for 
a time lighter (as well as richer) by a good division ; the sep- 
aration of its parts makes it more porous, and causes it to 
take up more room than it does in its natural state, and then 
it partakes of all the benefits of lighter land. When strong 
land is plowed, and not sufficiently, so that the parts remain 
gross, it is said to be rough, and it has not the benefit of till- 
age ; because most of the artificial pores (or interstices) are 
too large, and then it partakes of the inconveniences of the 
hollow land untilled. For when the light land is plowed but 
once, that is not sufficient to diminish its natural hollowness 
(or pores) and for want of more tillage, the parts into which 
it is divided by that once (or perhaps twice) plowing, remain 
too large, and consequently the artificial pores are large also, 
and in that respect are like the ill-tilled strong land. Light 
land having naturally less internal superficies, seems to require 
the more tillage or manure to enrich it. * * * * Artificial 
pores can not be too small, because the roots may the more 
easily enter the earth that has them, quite contrary to natural 
pores; for these may be and generally are, too small and too 
hard for the entrance of all weak roots, and for the free en- 
trance of strong roots. Insufficient tillage leaves strong land 
with its natural pores too small, and its artificial ones too 
large. It leaves light land with its natural and artificial pores 
both too large. Pores that are too small in hard ground, will 
not easily permit roots to enter them. Pores that are too 
large in any sort of land, can be of little other use to roots, 
but only to give them passage to other cavities more proper 
for them, and if in any place they lie open to the air, they 
are dried up and spoiled before they reach them. For fibrous 
roots can take in no nourishment from any cavity, unless they 
come into contact with, and press against all the superficies 
of that cavity which includes them ; for it dispenses the food 



FREQUENT PLOWINGS NECESSARY. 393 

to their lacteals by such pressure only. But a fibrous root is 
not so pressed by the superficies of a cavity whose diameter is 
greater than that of the root. 

" The surfaces of great clods form declivities on every side 
of them, and large cavities, which are as sinks to convey what 
rain and dew bring too quickly downward to below the plowed 
part. The first and second plowings with common plows 
scarcely deserve the name of tillage ; they rather serve to pre- 
pare the land for tillage. The third and fourth, and every 
subsequent plowing, may be of more benefit and less expense 
than any of the preceding ones ; for the finer the land is 
made by tillage, the richer it will become, and the more plants 
it will maintain. It has often been observed, that when part 
of a ground has been better tilled than the rest, and the whole 
ground constantly managed alike, afterward for six or seven 
years successively, this part that was but once better tilled 
always produced a better crop than the rest, and the differ- 
ence remained very visible every harvest. One part being 
once made finer, the dews did more enrich it; for they pene- 
trate within, and beyond the superficies whereto the roots are 
able to enter. The fine parts of the earth are impregnated 
throughout their whole substance with some of the riches car- 
ried in by the dews, and there deposited, until, by new tillage, 
the insides of those fine parts become superficies ; and as the 
corn drains them they are again supplied as before ; but the 
rough large parts can not have that benefit ; the dews not pen- 
etrating to their centers, they remain poor." 

It must be obvious to every one that a finely comminuted 
seed-bed will produce much more thrifty plants than a coarsely 
comminuted one will. For this reason when lands are plowed 
when not too wet, they always produce better than wet plowed 
ones. A garden deeply spaded and finely worked always pro- 
duces better than a shallow, cloddy one. 

If an entire field for wheat could be as finely comminuted 
in its particles as a garden the product would astonish the 
proprietor. 



f 

{ 



394 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

All soils have what is termed " capillary attraction ," that is, 
the power to suck up, or elevate to the surface mineral matters 
in solution from the subsoil, and the finer the soil is pulver- 
ized the stronger is the capillary attraction. In proof of this 
position the following, from the pen of J. H. Salisbury, an 
agricultural chemist of New York State, is here inserted : 

" From numerous observations which have been made at 
different times on the peculiar appearance of the surface of 
soils, clays, etc., during the warm summer months, and the 
fact that they, when covered with boards, stones, or other 
materials, so as to prevent them from supporting vegetation, 
become in a comparatively short time much more productive 
than the adjacent uncovered soil ; we have been led to the 
belief that the soil possessed some power within itself, aside 
from the roots of plants, of elevating soluble materials from 
deep sources to the surface* 

" To throw some light upon the subject, in May, 1852, I 
sunk th e boxes into the soil — one 40 inches deep, another 
28 inches deep, and a third 1G inches deep. All three of the 
boxes were 16 inches square. I then placed in the bottom of 
each box three pounds of sulphate of magnesia. The soil 
which was to be placed in the boxes above the sulphate of 
magnesia, was then thoroughly mixed, so as to be uniform 
throughout. 

" The boxes were then filled with it. This was done on the 
25th of May, 1852. After the boxes were filled, a. sample of 
soil was taken from each box, and the percentage of magnesia 
which it contained accurately determined. On the 28th of 
June another sample of surface soil was taken from each box, 
and the percentage of magnesia carefully obtained as before. 

" The result in each case pointed out clearly a marked in- 

* Dr. Alex. H. Stephens, of New York, was, I think, the first to suggest 
this idea. He speaks of it in his address, delivered before the State 
Agricultural Society of New York, on the Food of Plants, in January, 
1848. No accurate experiments were performed, however, to fix it with 
a degree of certainty, till these were made which appear in this paper. 



CAPILLARY ATTRACTION OF SOILS. 



395 



crease of magnesia. On the 17th of July, a sample of sur- 
face soil was taken a third time from each box, and carefully 
examined for magnesia; its percentage was found to be very 
perceptibly greater than on the 28th of the preceding month. 
On the 15th of the months of August and September follow- 
ing, similar examinations severally were made, with the same 
evident gradual increase of the magnesia in the surface soil. 
" The following are the results as obtained : 



Percentage of Magnesia. 



May 25th......... 

June 28th 

July 17th 

August 15th .... 
September 15th 



Box 40 in. deep. 


Box 28 in. deep. 


Box 10 in. deep. 


0.18 


0.18 


0.18 


0.25 


0.30 


0.32 


0.42 


0.46 


0.47 


0.47 


; 0.53 


0.54 


0.51 


0.58 


: 0.61 



" Before the middle of October, when it was intended to 
make another observation, the fall rains and frosts had com- 
menced ; on this account, the observations were discontinued. 
The elevation of the magnesia, as shown in the above experi- 
ments, evidently depends upon a well-known and common 
property of matter, viz., the attraction of solids for liquids, or 
what is commonly denominated capillary attraction. This 
may be clearly illustrated by taking a series of small capillary 
glass tubes, and insert one extremity of them in a solution of 
sulphate of magnesia or chloride of ammonium, and break or 
cut off the upper extremities just below the hight to which 
the solution rises. Expose them to the sun's rays ; the water 
of the solution evaporates, and the fixed sulphate of magnesia 
will be deposited just on the upper extremity of the tube. As 
the solution evaporates, more of it rises up from below, keep- 
ing the tubes constantly full ; yet no sulphate of magnesia 
passes off: it all, or nearly all, remains at, or rises just above, 
the evaporating surface. Just so in the soil ; as the water 
evaporates from the surface, more water, impregnated with the 
soluble materials from below, rises up to supply its place. As 



396 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

this evaporation goes on, it leaves the fixed materials behind 
in the surface soil at the several points of evaporation. 

" This explains why we often find, during the months of 
July, August, and September, a crust of soluble salts covering 
the surface of clay deposits which are highly impregnated with 
the alkalies, or any of the soluble compounds of the metals, 
earths, *or alkaline earths. Also the reason in many instances 
of the incrustations upon rocks that are porous and contain 
soluble materials. It also helps to explain the reason why 
manures, when applied for a short or longer time upon the 
surface of soil, penetrate to so slight a depth. Every agricul- 
turist is acquainted with the fact that the soil directly under 
his barn-yard, two feet below the surface (that is, any soil of 
ordinary fineness), is quite as poor as that covered with boards 
or otherwise, two feet below the surface in bis meadow ; the 
former having been for years directly under a manure heap, 
while the latter, perhaps, has never had barn-yard manure 
within many rods of it. 

" The former has really been sending its soluble materials 
up to the manure and surface soil ; the latter to the surface 
soil and the vegetation near or upon it, if uncovered. 

" The capillary attraction must vary very much in different 
soils ; that is, some have the power of elevating soluble mate- 
rials to the surface from much deeper sources than others. 
The pores or interstices in the soil correspond to capillary 
tubes ; the less the diameter of the pores or tubes, the higher 
the materials are elevated. Hence one very important con- 
sideration to the agriculturist, when he wishes nature to aid 
him in keeping his soil fertile, is to secure soil in a fine state 
of mechanical division, and of a highly retentive nature. 

" Nothing is more common than to see soils retain their 
fertility with the annual addition of much less manure than 
certain others. In fact, a given quantity of manure on the 
former, will seem to maintain their fertility for several years ; 
while the latter, with a similar addition, quite lose the good 
effects of the manure in a single season. 



SOIL MUST BE COMMINUTED. 



397 



" The former soils have invariably the rocks, minerals, etc., 
which compose them in a fine state of division ; while the 
latter have their particles more or less coarse." 

The great desideratum, then, is, to find some method by which 
the soil may be as perfectly pulverized or comminuted as may 
be, When a field has been pastured during several years the 
surface becomes very compact, from its natural "settlings," as 
well as from the trampling of cattle, and when broken up by 
the plow the furrow slices are little else than parallelograms of 
earth inverted from their former position. Many fields of 
this description which the writer has seen present an appear- 
ance very like the annexed cut (Fig. 20), the furrow slices 
turning over in many instances several rods in length, with- 
out a single break in them. Such lands should be plowed, 
cross-plowed and replowed at least, before being seeded in 
wheat. The soil is more coherent, from the roots of grasses 
and from the trampling of cattle, than that of fallow fields, 
consequently requires more labor to comminute it. 




Fig. 20. 



The soil of a stubble field, when plowed with the ordinary 
plow, presents an appearance as in the subjoined cut (Fig. 
21). In this it will be observed that the furrow slice crum- 
bles as it is turned over, and although three plowings would 
be highly advantageous to such soil, yet, if plowed and cross- 



398 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



plowed only, will yield as much as a pasture plowed three 
times — other things being equal. 




: ' ■ '""-'iLUiiiiniiitimmii 



Fig. 21. 

But the most effective soil-comminuter which the writer 
has yet seen in the shape of a plow, is the Columbus Double 
Plow, a representation of which will be found on the opposite 
page. The work done by this plow is illustrated in the 
annexed cut. A furrow measuring from seven to eleven 
inches deep, and from seven to fifteen wide, can be plowed 
with it with a draft of from five to seven hundred pounds. 

The forward, or skim plow, turns from two to three inches 
of the sod in the bottom of the furrow ; then the after-plow 
raises and turns from five to seven inches of the under soil 
on top, entirely covering the sod and all herbage. The roots 
of the grass being removed by the small plow, the under soil is 
pulverized by the large one, thus leaving a perfect seed bed, and 
rendering the use of the harrow unnecessary. 

Fig. 23 shows the movement of the furrow slices of sod 
and sub-soil as turned by the Columbus Double Plow. The 
Double Plow requires no more draft than the single plow 
doing the same amount of work. This has been proven by 
repeated experiments with the dynamometer. 

It is, therefore, a desirable implement for deep tilling, as it 
can be used with two small horses, by plowing a narrow and 
deep furrow. This is apparent, as will be perceived, that the 



COLUMBUS DOUBLE PLOW 



309 




Fig. 22. 



400 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



proportions of the furrow of the important plow (i. e. the sod 
or forward plow) are not destroyed, the width being double or 
greater than double the depth. 




Fig. 23. 

Deep Plowing. — The objects gained by deep plowing are 
more numerous than most persons are aware of, especially 
those who have not given the subject a careful examination. 

In the first place, the primary object of all tillage or 
mechanical division of the soil, is to give the roots of plants 
a larger range in search of food ; and when we consider the 
extent to which the roots of many plants penetrate the earth, 
if not obstructed by a compact subsoil, the object gained by 
deep plowing must be obviously great, even in this respect. 

2. By deep plowing, means are afforded to the surplus 
waters to retreat beneath the surface of the earth, and thus 
their injurious effects to the growing plants are entirely obvi- 
ated, while it affords a reservoir of moisture acceptable to the 
plants in time of drouth. 



IMPORTANCE OP DEEP PLOWING. 401 

3. The atmosphere is at all times more or less charged with 
carbonic acid and ammonia, elements of vital importance to the 
growing crops, wi.ich are brought down by showers of rain, 
and if allowed to penetrate the earth, are deposited in the soil, 
but if left upon the surface, do not benefit the crop. 

4. In times of drouth, when every facility should be afforded 
to the crop to obtain moisture from light showers and dews, it 
is only the deep mellow soil that receives the benefits of these 
agents ; for when the showers and dews are deposited upon 
the compact earth, they are immediately taken up by the 
atmosphere and lost to the plant; while on the other hand, if 
the soil is open and porous, they are absorbed by the soil for 
the future use of the plants. This principle can easily be 
tested by any one. Examine, in a dry time, a soil of say 
four inches deep, covering a hard pan or subsoil, and you will 
find it perfectly dry down the whole depth of the four inches ; 
while on the same soil, in the same location, where the soil is 
worked to the depth of eight inches or two feet, you will find 
it moist even to the very surface. 

5. On the principle of radiation, deep plowing has decided 
advantages over shallow, in protecting the crops against frost 
as well as drouth ; for the more compact a substance is, the 
greater the powers of radiation, consequently it sooner parts 
with its heat and is reduced to the temperature of the atmos- 
phere, which is frequently below the freezing point, when the 
loose mellow soil is far above it. 

6. On rolling lands, much injury is done by surface washing. 
Often more of the soluble elements dissolved by showers, are 
carried into the streams to enrich some ranker plantation, or 
lost forever in the ocean, than is taken up by the plant; the 
remedy for which is found only in artificial means, such as 
deep tillage, trenching, ditching, etc. 

Now, when we consider the advantages deep tillage has 
over shallow, our only wonder is that it is not more generally 
adopted. 

Line upon line and precept upon precept seems so necessary 
34 



402 TIIE WHEAT PLANT. 

upon this important subject, that no further apology should 
be required for the amount of space devoted to it in this work. 
Professor J. J. Mapes, who has paid much attention to prac- 
tical as well as scientific agriculture, presents the following 
arguments in favor of deep plowing : 

M 1. All plants consist of three parts — the main stem and its 
branches ; the leaves whose office is to collect the principal 
food or nourishment from the air ; and the roots which collect 
water-sap from the ground to keep the plant moist, to supply 
its juices, and to act as a vehicle for carrying to different parts 
of the plant the food gathered by the leaves. The roots also 
serve as supports to hold the plant in its place. 

2. The roots take in whatever liquids they are brought in 
contact with. They are increased in size and number by the 
direct application to them of food or stimulants (manures). 
They are also injured by coming in contact with such soluble 
poisonous materials as they can absorb. 

3. The contact of air is necessary to destroy (oxidize') certain 
poisonous mineral salts found in cdl soils — particularly theproto- 
salts of iron. 

Now, then, suppose we have a soil from which the air has 
been shut out by its compactness, or by the constant pressure 
of water or moisture in its pores. To break up and pulverize 
such a soil deeply, is to invite the growth of roots downward 
hclow the usual access of air. These deeper penetrating roots 
then absorb some of the poisonous (unoxidized) mineral com- 
pounds. The consequence is, the structure, not only of the 
roots, but of the whole plant, is injured. On such a soil it 
very often happens that shallow plowing, which only disturbs 
the thin surface portion immediately in contact with the air, 
will be preferable for the time being, to go down deeply at 
once. The true way is to go only half an inch to an inch 
deeper every year, and bring up a little of the under soil in 
contact with air, to be fitted by it for use ; but not bring up 
enough to injure the growing crops. Every one must have 
observed that the soil thrown out of a deep well will at first* 



MAPES, ON DEEP PLOWING. 403 

grow nothing ; and yet after contact with the air for a year or 
two, or more, it becomes quite equal to the old surface soil. 

Let us now look at another class of soils — those which are 
open, porous, and by reason of good natural under-drainage 
are a part of the year free from standing water to the depth 
of a foot or more. In this case the air will have penetrated 
deeply, and destroyed poisonous mineral compounds. Deep 
plowing will not loosen a mass of dangerous material, but on 
the contrary, will invite down the roots of plants where they 
will find a supply of moisture, even when the surface is 
parched with drought. To stir such soil only at the surface, 
would tend to a shallow growth of roots, and when the 
surface dries up, the plant fails to get moisture enough to 
supply the waste of water by evaporation from the leaves. In 
soils of this character it is manifestly desirable, nay, import- 
ant, to plow deeply. 

It is owing to such diversity of condition in soils, that 
practical men, reasoning only from their own experience, have 
been led to exactly opposite views in regard to deep and shal- 
low plowing. Literally, what is one man's meat is another's 
poison. And this remark has a wider application than to the 
mere question of plowing. The manures appropriate to 
particular soils, differ as widely as does the treatment 
required. Quacks in medicine recommend one kind of pills 
as a cure for all kinds of disease. Quacks in agriculture, in 
like manner, prescribe a particular treatment or manure as just 
the thing for all soils, and if ingenious, they can make out 
plausible arguments to support their pretensions. 

In regard to plowing deeply, the true theory is to provide 
a deep thorough drainage for all soils not naturally dry to a 
considerable depth from the surface; and then, hy degrees, 
break up the subsoil, until a deep bed of dry, warm, air-ex- 
posed soil is secured. When this is done, plants will sen i 
down and spread widely a mass of roots that will support a 
corresponding growth of vegetation above the surface, and as 



404: THE WHEAT PLANT. 

berore remarked, our crops will be independent of the mere 
surface effects of drought or rains/' 

Mr. Henry Stephens, a reliable English agricultural writer, 
in his treatise on u Tester Deep Land Culture" says: 

" The great object attained by deep-stirring the subsoil, is 
the prevention of water lodging about or near the roots of the 
cultivated plants. It is feared that thorough-draining a clayey 
subsoil will not alone secure that object. The reason why it 
is desirable that the subsoil about and below the roots of 
plants should be in as loose a state as to allow the rain-water 
that descends from the surface to pass from them quickly, is 
that the passage of water has a consolidating effect upon the 
subsoil as well as the soil ; and if it do not usually pass 
quickly through the former, as it does through the latter, it is 
because the upper soil is always in a loose state by cultivation. 
Now, there is no way of rendering the subsoil entirely loose 
but by deep-stirring it. The least consolidation of the sub- 
soil tends to retain the water as it descends from the surface, 
and thorough-draining can not of itself prevent that tendency 
in clay subsoils; and water when retarded is sure to chill the 
roots of plants in winter, and to prevent the incorporation of 
vegetable matters with both the subsoil and soil ; whereas 
deeply stirring the subsoil renders consolidation impossible 
for a considerable time, and in the meanwhile the plants enjoy 
vigorous health by their roots absorbing as much moisture, as 
it descends past them, as they require, and partaking of as 
much food as is prepared for them by the natural action of 
the soil and manure. No fear need be entertained of render- 
ing the soil or the subsoil too dry by means of thorough 
draining, or in conjunction with it of subsoil trench plowing, 
inasmuch as the bottoms of all the drains, an'd the subsoil for 
several inches above the tiles, are receptacles of moisture, 
which they are ever ready to yield to the wants of vegetation 
whenever demanded, through the easy and quick instrumen- 
tality of capillary attraction. Shallow plowed land has not a 



YESTER DEEP LAND CULTURE. -105 

sufficient body of pulverized mold to induce the action of 
capillary attraction. Continuous shallow plowing has, more- 
over, the effect of encrusting with a hard stratum the bottom 
of the furrow in clay subsoils ; and those plows which work 
at a constantly equal depth by means of wheels, render the 
bottom of the furrow on clay subsoils sooner hard than any 
other class of plows. 

Of all classes of subsoils the sandy ones are most quickly 
affected by subsoil trench plowing, and they are also as easily 
consolidated by water. Gravelly subsoils are next most easily 
affected ; and there are such of this class of subsoils so firmly 
compacted together, without the means of a clayey matrix, 
that water passes with difficulty through them ; and yet, when 
once broken asunder by the subsoil trench plow, they remain 
loose ever after. Thin clay subsoils are the next most easily 
affected by subsoil trench plowing; and generally having 
small veins of sand traversing them, or small stony grits in- 
terspersed through them, they become loose for a consider- 
able time after being subsoil trench plowed. The pure clay 
subsoils are the longest in being affected by subsoil trench plow- 
ing, and they have a constant tendency toward reconsolidation. 

It thus being a paramount object with the farmer to have 
the subsoils of the different classes of soils upon his farm 
always in a pulverized state, he should make himself well 
acquainted with the periods when it is necessary to renew their 
subsoil trench plowing. Experience has not yet decided on 
the respective periods at which this operation should be re- 
newed on the different classes of subsoils ; but enough has 
been ascertained on this point to lay it down as a rule, that 
the Double plow should be employed to cross-plow in the 
autumn the stubble land intended for green crop in the 
ensuing season, to the depth of 15 inches, at the end of every 
rotation of fives. The subsoil trench plow will not probably 
require to be used again during the currency of a lease on 
sandy and gravelly subsoils, nor even on thin clays; but on 
pure clays it may be required oftener than once in the course 



406 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

of a lease, although probably no farmer will undertake to do 
it oftener than once in a lease. The same feeling will prob- 
ably guide the farmer in the use of these implements that 
guides him in the liming of a farm — once in a lease. Experi- 
ence, of course, will determine its frequency; but common sense 
already instructs that subsoil-trench-plowing will be executed 
much more easily, more quickly, and therefore less expen- 
sively, on repetition than at first. 

To demonstrate that deep tillage is not a matter of mere 
opinion or speculation, the annexed is quoted ; being the re- 
sults produced by systematic deep culture by the Marquess of 
Tweeddale, in East Lothian, Scotland : 

Results of the Yester Deep Land-Culture on the 
Yester Farms. — A few instances of the crops received from 
each of the Yester farms since it has been treated in the way 
above described, will suffice to show the results which have 
already been obtained from the system of deep land-culture 
here recommended for general adoption by practical agricul- 
turists, whether proprietors or farmers. 

It is right to mention that at Yester Mains and Broad- 
woodside the subsoil-trench-plowing, in a few of the strong 
clay fields, had an evident injurious effect upon the barley 
crop and new grass, on account of the subsoil being originally 
a very bad, poor clay ; and the crop of turnips not having 
been carried off, but eaten on the land late in spring, the seed 
furrow was obliged to be given when the soil was in an unfit 
state for plowing, particularly under the circumstance of the 
large quantity of the subsoil not being thoroughly incorpo- 
rated with the surface soil. This inconvenience has now been 
entirely avoided by storing the turnips when at maturity in 
autumn, and by immediately plowing up the land and ex- 
posing it to the frosts of winter. 

In the second rotation, now being pursued on Yester Mains, 
purple-top yellow turnips were raised in 1854, on Steel's 
Walls field, with 13 loads of farm-yard dung and 2\ cwt. of 
guano per imperial acre. The crop was 32J tons per acre, 



RESULTS OP YESTER DEEP-CULTURE. 40< 

rooted and shawed, as ascertained by measurement and weight 
from a whole acre of a fair average of the field, when carried 
off to be consumed by cattle. In this field of 87 acres there 
is now no trace of the original state of the very bad subsoil 
to the depth under culture. Barley will succeed the turnips 
in 1855. Black vegetable matter obtained from the drained 
loch at Danskine has been put on the strongest clayey spots 
of fields of this farm to open the tenacity of the clay, and 
good turnips have been by that means raised upon parts upon 
which turnips would formerly scarcely braird. 

The Moss Bents field, which had originally been stiff clay, 
containing 15f imperial acres, was in oats in 1850, which pro- 
duced 29^ bushels the acre. It was bare-fallowed and sub- 
soil-trench-plowed in 1851, and in 1852 produced 61 quarters 
of good wheat, and 2J quarters of light, equal to 38J bushels, 
and realized above £11 the acre. 

The Long Bents field, of sandy clay soil and subsoil, con- 
taining 16 acres, was in oats in 1848, which produced 65 
quarters, equal to 37 bushels the acre. In 1819 it was bare- 
fallowed and subsoil-trench-plowed, and in 1850 it yielded 58 
quarters of good wheat, and 4 quarters of light, realizing £10 
an acre. In 1851 it was in grass, and in 1852 the lea was 
deep-plowed with the Tweeddale plow 15 inches deep. In 1853 
it was in oats, which produced 104- 1 quarters, equal to 61J 
bushels the acre. In 1854 it carried an excellent crop of tur- 
nips, the weight of which was not ascertained. 

At Broadwoodside the subsoil-trench-plowing was carried 
on in a perfect state from the commencement of the improve- 
ments. 

The Wa' Tree Park, which was originally of stiff tenacious 
clay soil and subsoil, containing 19f- imperial acres, was in 
oats in 1850, which yielded 60 quarters, equal to 28f bushels 
the acre. In 1851, 6^ acres were bare-fallowed and subsoil- 
trench-plowed, and 13^- acres subsoil-trench-plowed and made 
with turnips. In 1852 the 6J acres produced, of wheat, 28J- 
quarters of good, and 3J quarters of light, realizing £15, 7s. 



408 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

4d. the acre ; and the 13J acres produced barley, which aver- 
aged 31J bushels, and realized £6, 0s. lOd. the acre. 

The Holmes Park, which was originally of very poor stiff 
tenacious clay soil and subsoil, and containing 24 acres impe- 
rial, was in grass in 1850, and was deep-plowed, 15 inches, 
with the Tweeddale plow in winter. It carried oats in 1851, 
which yielded 108 quarters, equal to 43^ bushels the acre. In 
1852 it was subsoil-trench-plowed 19 inches deep for turnips, 
which were a fair crop. In 1853 it was barley, of which 79^ 
quarters were good and 18 quarters light, equal to 39 bushels, 
realizing £9, 17s. 6d. the acre. 

The Kitchen Croft, which was originally of stiff sandy clay 
soil and subsoil, containing a large number of boulders, and 
consisting of 8^ acres imperial, was previously let at £8, 15s. 
for the field, and it was thorough-drained in the winter of 
1848. In 1S49 it was bare-fallowed and subsoil-trench-plowed 
19 inches deep. In 1850 it carried wheat, of which 24 quar- 
ters were good, 5J quarters light, equal to 34J bushels, and 
realizing £8, 8s. 8d. the acre. In 1851 it was turnips, which 
were good. In 1852, barley, of which 40 quarters were good 
and 3 J quarters light, equal to 53 bushels the acre, and was 
sold for £10, 12s. lOd. the acre. 

The land on Broadwoodside farm was limed after being 
thorough-drained and subsoil-trench-plowed. At first, the 
quantity used was 48 bolls, or 288 bushels, to the imperial 
acre ; but it was soon found that 30 bolls, or 144 bushels, had 
an equally good effect upon the land, and that was the quan- 
tity which the farm mostly received. 

The land on Danskine farm was not subsoil-trench-plowed 
at all, and only deep-plowed with the Tweeddale plow, with 
three horses yoked abreast in the compensation swing-trees, 
to the depth of 14 or 15 inches, as the subsoil was of such an 
open nature as not to require further pulverization. Sandy 
oats were the kind first used on this farm, but were given up 
for the Hopetoun variety, in consequence of the yield being 
greater and the straw better on the improved soil. 



VEGETABLE MATTER APPLIED TO CLAY. 409 

The poor clay soil of Danskine was covered with a black 
vegetable matter, obtained from the bottom of the Loch of 
Danskine after the water had been drained off. This vege- 
table substance was laid on the land, at the rate of 180 cubic 
yards per imperial acre, upon the stubble in autumn, cut 
small with the spade, spread, and plowed in with a 14-inch 
furrow with three horses in the Tweeddale plow. At first the 
quantity laid on was 120 cubic yards the acre, but latterly it 
was increased to 180. Such a large quantity of matter liter- 
ally covers the surface when spread over it, so that its black 
color imparts a darkened hue to the soil after incorporation 
with it. The cost of digging this matter — lifting it out of 
the bog by means of a railroad and steam-power, carting it on 
the land, spreading it, with tear and wear of machinery, and 
interest on cost of machinery — is 7d. per cubic yard ; so that 
the cost of manuring an imperial acre with it was from £3, 
10s. to £5, 5s. 

This black vegetable matter is not a peat, but a deposit 
composed of sphagnum moss, rushes, hazel, alder, willow, in 
leaves and twigs. Its constituents were ascertained by Dr. 
Anderson in 1850, viz : 

One Another 

specimen. specimen. 

Water, 31.78 49.49 

Nitrogen, 0.89 0.85 

Humine, 6.00 16.82 

in the dry state, after exposure to the air. The constituents 
are valuable on account of the nitrogen they contain, which 
is 1.5 per cent, in the dry state, and 0.9 per cent, in the state 
examined, which was of course drier than when taken out of 
the deposit. This substance was used to act mechanically 
upon poor thin clay; but after an incorporation, the soil be- 
comes a clay loam, still open. It constitutes, in short, the 
entire vegetable matter of the soil. It has been applied to all 
the fields but two, which are yet undone. The horses were 
severely worked in carting on this substance to the land, on 
account of the deep rutting of the wheels which so much 
35 



410 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

cartage on deep plowed land occasioned. They, nevertheless, 
retained their good health, and still work on the farm. In 
dry weather the plowing-in of this matter was heavy, not so 
much on account of the deep furrow as the rutted state of the 
ground. This substance is found acceptable to all sorts of 
plants in the garden. It is a complete deodorizer of liquid 
manure. It was put on the land to keep it open, and lime 
will only be subsequently applied to meet the wants of vege- 
tation. It is used as a bottoming to all the courts and boxes 
in the steading, with the view of absorbing the liquid from 
the cattle, and of making a compounded manure with straw. 

This vegetable matter, after being plowed in, is beneficially 
acted on by the atmosphere ; it incorporates with the soil, and 
saves a furrow in tn*e working of the land. Beside this sub- 
stance, the turnips in 1854 were manured with 2J cwt. of 
guano. When the matter is laid on in dry weather, the tur- 
nips are always good ; but in wet, the rutting of the soil has 
an injurious effect upon them. This substance proves of no 
inconvenience to the singling of the turnip plants, except 
when an occasional large lump may have been left unbroken. 
The turnips raised by it were the purple-top yellow and green 
globe. When the barley land is covered with this substance, 
it is plowed and sown without any dung. The barley crop of 
1854, treated in this manner, weighed 16 stones 3 lb. the boll 
of 4 bushels, or nearly 57 lb. the bushel — a heavy weight for 
barley. When not treated with vegetable matter, the barley 
land only receives one furrow, and that furrow is given at any 
time the land is in a proper state for it, even as early as No- 
vember, after the turnips have been stored. The subsequent 
rains do not render the land firm with this substance in it, 
and the land harrows freely. Barley is here found to have a 
darker color after turnips, raised with guano and carried off, 
than when eaten off by sheep. 

The stubble of Cauldside field, of 22 acres, was plowed 15 
inches deep, with three horses abreast, in the autumn of 1850. 
The land was bare-fallowed in 1851, and covered with the 



RESULTS OF DEEP LAND-CULTURE. 411 

vegetable substance in July and August, and received no other 
manuring. It was sown with Hunter's wheat early in Sep- 
tember, with about 9-|- cwt. of rape-cake per imperial acre. 
The rape-cake is found to have a better effect upon the future 
crop, when sown a day or two before the wheat, to allow it to 
be softened with dew or rain before being harrowed into the 
soil. The wheat plant grew apace, and was strong before win- 
ter, and its roots descended to the bottom of the pulverized 
subsoil before December. Roots of wheat at 9 inches below 
the surface, being unaffected by the winter frosts, are ready to 
shoot up with the first mild weather in spring. The crop of 
1852 was 5J- quarters per imperial acre, and was of a quality 
to weigh 18 stones 13 lb. per boll of 4 bushels, or 66^ lb. per 
bushel — a a;reat weight for wheat crown above 700 feet above 
the level of the sea. A small portion of the young grass 
after wheat was reserved for cutting for the horses before being- 
sent to pasture, and for hay. The hay crop was about 250 
stones per imperial acre, of 22 lb. to the stone. The remain- 
der of the grass was pastured with Cheviot ewes and their 
lambs, got by Leicester tups, keeping three ewes and their 
lambs to the acre. Four scores of ewes had seven scores of 
lambs, and three of the ewes had three lambs each. The 
lambs were sold for £1 each. The aftermath, after the lambs 
were gone, was pastured with cows and horses. In the second 
year the grass was pastured by Kyloe cows and their calves, 
as also by horses and cows. The stocking was equal to one 
head of oxen per acre. 

The Easter Muir field, with originally a stiff hard clay soil, 
and clay moorband pan subsoil, containing 22|- acres imperial, 
was in oats when in an undrained state, which produced 74J 
quarters, equal to 31-J bushels the acre. It was thorough- 
drained and bare-fallowed in 1849. In 1850 it carried oats, 
which produced 103J quarters, equal to 43J bushels the acre. 
In 1851 it was bare-fallowed, manured with 180 cubic yards 
of the vegetable matter per acre, and deep-plowed with the 
Tweeddale plow to the depth of 14 inches. In 1852 it was in 



412 THE WHEAT YLA NT. 

wheat, which produced 91J quarters of good, and 6J- quarters 
of light wheat, equal to 41f bushels the acre, realizing £12, 
18s. 9d. the acre. In 1853 the young grass kept seventy- 
ewes and seventy-three lambs all the season, and twenty cattle 
from 12th to 26th July. In 1854 the second year's grass 
kept twenty cattle, from 27th April to 19th May, when it was 
afterward let for the season at £40. 

The Greenlaw field, of originally a stiff sandy clay soil, and 
a clay subsoil, with much moorband pan and stones, contain- 
ing 43J acres imperial, was in oats, after old grass undrained, 
which produced 139J quarters, equal to 30£ bushels the acre. 
It was thorough-drained in 1852, manured with 180 cubic 
yards of the vegetable matter, and deep-plowed with the 
Tweeddale plow to the depth of 14 inches, and prepared for 
turnips and bare fallow. In 1853, 26^- acres were in wheat, 
which produced of good 60J quarters, and of light 2^ quar- 
ters, equal to 22| bushels the acre, realizing £10, Is. 4d. the 
acre; and 16J acres grew barley, which of good produced 61J 
quarters, and 5J- quarters of light, equal to 38J bushels the 
acre, realizing £9, 2s. 6d. the acre. 

The wheat realized, altogether, £276 15 6 

The barley realized, altogether, 159 16 7£ 

Together, £436 12 1J 

In 1854 the young grass kept eighty ewes and one hun- 
dred and thirty-one lambs from March. The lambs were sold 
in July and August, and the ewes in October and November — 
all fat. It also kept a mare and foal all the season ; three 
cows from 1st August to end of October; seven farm-horses 
from 28th August to 1st November ; and thirteen calves all 
October. It yielded, beside, 1000 stones of hay, at 9d. per 
stone. The second year's grass will be in 1855. 

The particulars contained in the foregoing statements af- 
ford some useful information. Before the thorough-drainage 
of Danskinc farm, the oats yielded about 30 bushels the acre. 
Thorough-draining alone increased the yield of oats to above 



RESULTS OF YESTER CULTURE. 413 

40 bushels, the increase of 10 bushels being more than 400 lb. 
of grain in weight from the acre : while deep-plowing and 
manuring with vegetable matter, superadded to the thorough- 
draining, caused the increase to exceed 40 bushels of wheat, 
being an increase in weight of grain of at least 630 lb. to the 
acre. An increase to the power of land to raise 40 bushels 
of wheat, instead of 30 bushels of oats, will be appreciated by 
every practical farmer. Even the inferior crop of 1853 on the 
same farm realized the sum of £436, 12s., off 43 acres — up- 
ward of £10 an acre; while the entire cost of draining, deep- 
plowing, and vegetable manuring, was a little above £13 an 
acre. As the vegetable matter would be available for the fu- 
ture crops of the rotation, and had 1853 been as good a year 
for wheat as the one before, or the year after, that single crop 
would have repaid the entire expenses, heavy as they neces- 
sarily were. 

On the Moss Bents field of Yester Mains the subsoil- 
trench-plowing, and manuring with farm-yard dung on 
bare fallow, produced 38J bushels of wheat per acre in 1852 ; 
while previously the same field, after being thorough-drained, 
yielded only 29 bushels of oats. The oats would weigh 
1160 lbs., and the wheat 2400 lbs., which is more than double 
the weight of grain, and of a superior kind, too, from the area. 
The Long Bents field, on the same farm, yielded, in 1848, 37 
bushels of oats the acre ; and in 1853, after being subsoil- 
trench-plowed, it yielded 61 bushels of oats to the acre, 
making a difference of 1080 lbs. of grain to the acre in favor 
of the pulverization of the subsoil. 

The Holmes Park of Broadwoodside farm, after being sub- 
soil-trench-plowed in 1850, carried 43J bushels of oats to 
the acre in 1851, and 39 bushels of barley in 1853. The 
Kitchen Croft of the same farm yielded 34J bushels of wheat 
in 1850, after being subsoil-trench-plowed and bare-fallowed, 
and in 1852, 53 bushels of barley to the acre. 

Such crops of grain as these indicate the soil to be in a 
sound bearing state j and they are results very different from 



414 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

what was to be expected from the same land at one time worth 
not more than from 6s. to 10s. an acre. But the increase is 
still more striking in the green crops of turnips and grass. 
The turnips have increased from a very moderate crop of cer- 
tainly not more than 12 or 15 tons on the acre, though not 
weighed, to upward of 30 tons the acre, ascertained by weight 
and measurement. Such an increase as this, in a root so val- 
uable as the turnip, is incalculable, as its quality in food in- 
creases proportionately with the weight of crop. The grass, 
as green forage and pasture, affords a remarkable instance of 
improvement. A yield of 250 stones of hay the acre is a heavy 
one from any soil, but remarkably so from a soil so recently 
almost in a state of nature. The maintenance of three ewes 
with their lambs, many of them double, on the acre, indicates 
a feeding power in the improved soil of no mean order ; and 
the same result is confirmed on the pasture of Danskine, a 
high-lying farm, supporting, in a thriving condition all sum- 
mer, an ox to the acre. 

Every practical farmer will be able to appreciate the value 
of so much increased produce from the soil, of the various 
crops raised in this country, as have been enumerated. He 
knows that land, which was originally worth 10s. an acre 
overhead, yielding such crops as the above figures indicate — 
and the figures are derived from books most accurately and 
minutely kept — is now worth a great deal more. Not having 
been let to tenants since their improvement, it is diflicult to 
put a market value upon the land as regards rent; but expe- 
rience would not consider it stretching a point were it stated, 
as the belief of one, that the land had increased in value four 
or perhaps five fold. Indeed, when the great saving in work- 
ing the farm for the future is taken into due consideration, the 
value of the land is even more than what has been suo-o-ested. 
One circumstance corroborates such a conclusion. Both the 
wheat and the barley grown on the Yester farms now realize 
the top prices in the Haddington market ; and the Hadding- 
ton market is a severe test on the value of any grain presented 



THE YESTER SYSTEM SAVES LABOR. 415 

at it, inasmuch as grain is shown there that has been raised 
on as good soil, as favorable a climate, and with as much skill 
as in arty district of the kingdom. But wheat that has attained \ 
66 lbs., barley 57 lbs., and oats 44 lbs. the bushel, need not 
fear competition in any market, and from any locality. 

Besides these direct instances of the increase of produce, 
the economy of the system may be judged of by the following 
particulars : — 

It is the opinion of the stewards upon the farms, that six 
pairs of horses will now be able to accomplish what it has 
taken eight pairs to do hitherto. Here, then, in one depart- 
ment of labor alone, is a saving of 25 per cent. This is the 
opinion of men who have been plowmen themselves, and 
who had seen the state of the soil before as well as after the 
improvements, and who have therefore been many years in 
the service of the Marquess. 

Economy in horse labor arises from cessation of plowing, 
from the autumn cross-plowing of the stubble to the making up 
of the land for turnips in spring. The advantage of a cessa- 
tion from plowing in winter will be best understood by those 
who have heavy clay soils to manage, even after being 
thorough-drained ; because if such were stirred at any time 
in spring in a moist state, or before a fall of rain, they are 
sure to be converted in the first dry weather, into tough obdu- 
rate clods, which require no inconsiderable amount of labor 
to reduce, and to effect which, clod-crushers, grubbers, and 
rollers must be called into requisition. The Yester deep- 
plowed land requires no such assistance. 

Such a direct saving of labor is a great furtherance to hav- 
ing the spring work so far advanced in autumn as to render 
the farmer independent of the weather both in winter and 
spring. The winter furrow lies snugly awaiting the call in 
spring, at the time when it is in the best state to be worked ; 
and should the weather still prove adverse, the land can 
wait for the best weather, since it is already in a sufficiently 
pulverized state. The power of thus only working the soil 



416 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

when it is in the best state to receive the labor is equivalent 
to a saving of labor. 

A saving may also be effected in the purchase of imple- 
ments. Many of the most costly implements employed on 
farms, such as Norwegian harrows, Crosskill's clod-crushers, 
grubbers, rollers, are used only for pulverizing the soil. The 
occupation of such implements is gone in the Yester deep 
land-culture. The subsoil-trench-plowing, by one double 
operation, effectually and permanently pulverizes not only the 
soil, but the subsoil to the depth of nineteen or twenty inches ; 
and the Tweeddale plow itself afterward maintains the soil in 
a state of pulverization to the depth of fifteen inches, leaving 
still a stirred subsoil of four or five inches beneath a really 
unusually deep furrow. Experience has fully established that, 
from the pulverized state of the soil in spring, no other im- 
plements are wanting for the cultivation of the soil than the 
plows described above, together with the common harrow with 
longer tines. 

Another saving is effected in the manual labor bestowed on 
the fields. The deep-plowing having eradicated all the strong- 
rooted weeds, no wrack or couch grass has to be hand-picked, 
few stones to be gathered from the surface, no large plants to 
be weed-hooked among the growing crops. Such a saving as 
this is not easily estimated, but the work it saves usu- 
ally constitutes an item in farm expenditure worthy of 
consideration. 

The hastening of the ripening of grain crops in an upland 
or late district is one of the advantages insured by the Yester 
system of deep land-culture. A harvest delayed for a fort- 
night or three weeks beyond the period it might have been 
ready, is a serious consideration for the farmer, both in the 
cutting down and in the gathering in of the crop. The entire 
value of a crop of wheat or of barley may depend upon the 
state of the weather experienced after such a delay ; and in a. 
late harvest the days are, besides, much shorter for executing 
so great a work as a harvest always is. 



CLOD CRUSHER. 



417 



Besides the positive advantages derivable from this system 
of land cultivation, there are negative ones of equal value. 
Let any amount of rain fall upon the pulverized soil and sub- 
soil, attained by means of subsoil-trench-plowing, to nineteen 
inches in depth, and the soil never becomes in a sour and 
poachy state ; and observation has proved that it never again 
becomes so cold as land in the commonly cultivated state. 
This negative advantage produces a positive one, which is, 
that young wheat-plants and young clovers are never thrown 
out of the ground in winter or spring, however late or cold 
the weather may be. Another thing is, that snow lies a 
shorter time on the ground in spring. This arises from the 
frost not having a moist soil to act'upon, and it therefore does 
not leave the surface-soil in a state of apparent fermentation, 
in which weak soils seem often to be in spring. 

Clod Crusher. 

After the field has been well plowed with a double plow 
(the Columbus and the Michigan double plow being the 
only ones of which the writer has any knowledge), should 



\ 




Fig. 24. 



418 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

it appear to be lumpy or cloddy, a great benefit will un- 
doubtedly be derived, if the soil is dry, from a common 
field roller ; this will pulverize many of the clods or lumps 
which cohered too firmly to be comminuted with the plow. 
In England, an implement called "Crossbill's Clod Crusher" 
is extensively used ; and one equally as good is now manufac- 
tured in Columbus, 0. The cut on the preceding page and 
the following correspondence, copied from the Ohio Cultivator, 
will convince the intelligent reader of the necessity of such 
an implement, as well as convey an idea of the structure and 
working of the Crusher itself. 

Friend Harris : I have been thinking of making a roller with spikes 
in it, but I am afraid to try it. I thought of cast spikes one inch in dia- 
meter, and six inches out of the log and four in it, but I am afraid they 
will break. The cost would be greater than I expected ($15, I think, 
for spikes) ; and if they break, it will be an experiment for the benefit 
of my neighbors, as well as myself, at my expense. 

Will thee please give me some information, through the Cultivator, if 
there has been an implement made of that sort ; also, if there are any for 
sale in this State. There is something of the kind much needed to pul- 
verize the ground before putting in the seed, such a season as this in 
particular. The corn ground in this locality is, a large portion of it, very 
cloddy and hard, so that a common roller and harrow will not do the 
work as it should be. 

Please give us some information about how to construct a spike roller 
or where to get one. My uncle made one, last fall, with wooden spikes, 
that will pulverize the hardest clods. It will not clog, unless the ground 
is too wet to harrow. The rows or spikes are diagonal, about five inches 
apart each way, and sharpened after they were put in. I would like to 
have something more durable, if it did not cost too much. Stir up the 
farmers, and tell them not to look complacently on their cloddy fields, 
and say they can't help it. Paul Tomlinson. 

Highland Co., 6th mo., 1859. 

Answer. — The spike roller will, no doubt, serve a good purpose, 
where nothing better can be had; but for a thing to do the business for 
certain, we nominate GILL'S CLOD CRUSHER, of which the above cut 
is an illustration. This machine consists of 14 rings or sections, made 
of cast iron, 30 inches in diameter, the spokes about an inch thick, and 
the face a corrugated blunt chisel edge, covering some five inches in 



DR. MADDEN ON PULVERIZATION. 419 

width. The whole length of the roller is 7 feet. The whole face is so 
foliated, indented, and corrugated, that it will crush and divide any clod 
or lump not literally as firm as a stone. It is so constructed as to open- 
ness of face and independence of action, that it can not be clogged on 
any land that is dry enough to have a roller used upon it. Each ring 
plays separately upon the shaft, which is of wrought iron, two inches in 
diameter. At the ends of the shaft are gudgeons or axles, to put on carry- 
ing wheels, for taking the roller to the field with the same facility as an 
ox-cart is moved. The whole weight of the roller is about a ton. It 
will never wear out, or get out of order. Hon. Thos. Ewing, of Fairfield 
Co., who should be well known to every citizen of Ohio and the Union, 
after using one of Gill's Clod Crushers for a week, writes to say that it 
is the unanimous verdict of his hands, that " it is the bulliest thing 
among clods they ever saw !" in which opinion Mr. Ewing concurs. 

This Clod Crusher does not pack the soil like a roller, but leaves it all 
light and fine. Ever since we saw the Scotch Clod Crusher of Crosskill, 
in the N. Y. Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1853, we have been in hope 
some of our manufacturers would take hold of this matter; and we are 
glad to learn that J. L. Gill &• Son of this city are now fully enlisted in 
the enterprize, and that their machine is far superior to Crosskill's. 

In order to exhibit more fully and clearly the necessity of 
pulverizing the soil, or making it as fine as possible, we have 
extracted the following from a lecture on Agricultural Science 
by Dr. Madden, of England; in which the subject is not only 
clearly and forcibly stated, but at the same time philosophic- 
ally also. 

" The first thing which occurs after the sowing of the seed 
is, of course, germination : and before we examine how this 
process may be influenced by the condition of the soil, we must 
necessarily obtain some correct idea of the process itself. 
The most careful examination has proved that the process of 
germination consists essentially of various chemical changes, 
which require for their development the presence of air, moist- 
ure, and a certain degree of warmth. Now, it is obviously un- 
necessary for our present purpose that we should have the least 
idea of the nature of these processes : all we require to do is, 
to ascertain the conditions under which they take place ; hav- 
ing detected these, we know at once what is required to make 



420 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



a seed grow. These, we have seen, are air, moisture, and a 
certain degree of warmth ; and it consequently results, that 
wherever a seed is placed in these circumstances, germination 
will take place. Viewing matters in this light, it appears that 
/soil does not act chemically in the process of germination ; that 
its sole action is confined to its being the vehicle by means of 
which a supply of air and moisture and warmth can be con- 
tinually kept up. With this simple statement in view, we are 
*• quite prepared to consider the various conditions of soil, for 
the purpose of determining how far these will influence the 
future prospects of the crop, and we shall accordingly at once 
proceed to examine carefully into the mechanical relations of 
the soil. This we propose doing by the aid of figures. Soil, 
examined mechanically, is found to consist entirely of parti- 
cles of all shapes and sizes, from stones and pebbles, down to 
the finest powder ; and, on account of their extreme irregular- 
ity of shape, they can not lie so close to one another as to 
prevent there being passages between them ; owing to which 
circumstance soil in the mass is always more or less porous. 
If, however, we proceed to examine one of the smallest parti- 
cles of which soil is made up, we shall find that even this is 
not always solid, but is much more frequently porous, like soil 
in the mass. A considerable portion of this finely-divided 
part of soil, the impalpable matter, as it is generally called, is 
found, by the aid of the microscope, to consist of brdken-down 
vegetable tissue, so that when a small portion of the finest dust 




Fre. 25. 




LACK OF AIR AND MOISTURE IN SOIL. 421 

from a garden or field is placed under the microscope, we have 
exhibited to us particles of every variety of shape and struc- 
ture, of which a certain part is evidently of vegetable origin. 

In these figures I have given a very rude representation of 
these particles ; and I must beg you particularly to remember 
that they are not meant to represent by any means accurately 
what the microscope exhibits, but are only designed to serve 
as a plan by which to illustrate the mechanical properties of 
the soil. On referring to Fig. 25, we perceive that there are 
two distinct classes of pores : first, the large ones, which exist 
between the particles of soil; and, second, the very minute 
ones, which occur in the particles themselves ; and you will 
at the same time notice, that whereas all the larger pores — 
those between the particles of soil — communicate most freely 
with each other, so that they form canals, the small pores, 
however freely they may communicate with one another in the 
interior of the particle in which they occur, have no direct con- 
nection with the pores of the surrounding particles. Let us 
now, therefore, trace the effect of this arrangement. In Fig. 
25, we perceive that these canals and pores are all empty, the 
soil being perfectly dry ; and the canals communicating freely 
at the surface with the surrounding atmosphere, the whole will 
of course be filled with air. If, in this condition, a seed be 
planted in the soil, you at once perceive that it is freely 
supplied with air, but there is no moisture; therefore, when 
soil is perfectly dry, a seed can not grow. 

Let us turn our attention now to Fig. 26. Here we per- 
ceive that both the pores and canals are no longer represented 
white, but black, this color being used to indicate water ; in 
this instance, therefore, water has taken the place of air, or, 
in other words, the soil is very wet. If we observe our seed 
now, we find it abundantly supplied with water, but no air. 
Here again, therefore, germination can not take place. It 
may be well to state here, that this can never occur exactly in 
nature, because, water having the power of dissolving air to a 
certain extent, the seed in Fig. 26 is, in fact, supplied with 



422 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



a certain amount of this necessary substance ; and, owing to 
this, germination does take place, although by no means under 
such advantageous circumstances as it would were the soil in 
a better condition. 





Wte pass on now to Fig. 27. Here we find a different 
state of matters. The "anals are open and freely supplied 
with air, while the pores are filled with water ; and conse- 
quently you perceive that, while the seed has quite enough 
of air from the canals, it can never be without moisture, as 
every particle of soil which touches it is well supplied with 
this necessary ingredient. This, then, is the proper condition 
of soil for germination, and in fact for every period of the 
plant's development ; and this condition occurs when soil is 
moist, but not net — that is to say, when it has the color and 
appearance of being well watered, but when it is still capable 
of being crumbled to pieces by the hands, without any of its 
particles adhering together in the familiar form of mud. 

Turning our eyes to Fig. 28, we observe still another con- 
dition of soil. In this instance, as far as water is concerned, 
the soil is in its healthy condition — it is moist, but not wet, 
the pores alone being filled with water. But where are the 
canals? We see them in a few places, but in by far the 
greater part of the soil none are to be perceived ; this is owing 
to the particles of soil having adhered together, and thus so 
far obliterated the interstitial canals, that they appear only 



EXCESS OF WATER IN SOIL. 423 

like pores. This is the state of matters in every clod of earth ; 
and you will at once perceive, on comparing it with the upper 
right hand portion, which represents a stone, that these two 
differ only in possessing a few pores, which latter, while they 
may form a reservoir for moisture, can never act as vehicles 
for the food of plants, as the roots are not capable of extend- 
ing their fibers into the interior of a clod, but are at all times 
confined to the interstitial canals. 

With these four conditions before us, let us endeavor to 
apply them practically to ascertain when they occur in our 
fields, and how those which are injurious may be obviated. 

The first of them, we perceive, is a state of too great dry- 
ness, a very rave condition, in this climate at least; in fact, 
the only case in which it is likely to occur is in very coarse 
sands, where the soil, being chiefly made up of pure sand and 
particles of flinty matter, contains comparatively much fewer 
pores ; and, from the large size of the individual particles, as- 
sisted by their irregularity, the canals are wider, the circula- 
tion of air freer, and, consequently, the whole is much more 
easily dried. When this state of matters exists, the best treat- 
ment is to leave all the stones which occur on the surface of 
the field, as they cast shades, and thereby prevent or retard 
the evaporation of water. 

We will not, however, make any further observations on 
this very rare case, but will rather proceed to Fig. 2G, a much 
more frequent, and, in every respect, more important condition 
of soil : I refer to an excess of water. 

When water is added to perfectly dry soil, it, of course, in 
the first instance, fills the interstitial canals, and from these 
enters the pores of each particle; and if the'supply of water 
be not too great, the canals speedily become empty, so that the 
whole of the fluid is taken up by the pores : this, we have al- 
ready seen, is the healthy condition of the soil. If, however, 
the supply of water be too great, as is the case when a spring 
gains admission into the soil, or when the sinking of the fluid 
through the canals to a sufficient depth below the surface is 



424 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

prevented, it is clear that these also must get filled with water 
so soon as the pores have become saturated. This, then, is 
the condition of undrained soil. 

Not only are the pores filled, but the interstitial canals 
are likewise full; and the consequence is, that the whole pro- 
cess of the germination and growth of vegetables is materially 
interfered with. We shall here, therefore, briefly state the in- 
jurious effects of an excess of water, for the purpose of im- 
pressing more strongly on your minds the necessity of thor- 
ough-draining, as the first and most essential step toward the 
improvement of your soil. 

The first great effect of an excess of water is, that it pro- 
duces a corresponding diminution of the amount of air beneath 
the surface, which air is of the greatest possible consequence 
in the nutrition of plants ; in fact, if entirely excluded, germi- 
nation could not take place, and the seed sown would, of 
course, either decay or lie dormant. 

Secondly, an excess of water is most hurtful, by reducing 
considerably the temperature of the soil ; this I find, by careful 
experiment, to be to the extent of six and a-half degrees Fah- 
renheit in summer, which amount is equivalent to an elevation 
above the level of the sea of 1,950 feet. 

These are the two chief injuries of an excess of water in 
soil which affect the soil itself. There are very many others 
affecting the climate, etc. ; but these not so connected with the 
subject in hand as to call for an explanation here. 

Of course, all these injurious effects are at once overcome 
by thorough-draining, the result of which is, to establish a 
direct communication between the interstitial canals and the 
drains, by which means it follows that no water can remain 
any length of time in these canals without, by its gravitation, 
finding its way into the drains. 

The 4th Fig. indicates badly-cultivated soil, or soil in 
which large unbroken clods exist; which clods, as we have al- 
ready seen, are very little better than stones, on account of 
their impermeability to air and the roots of plants. 



PROPORTION OP AIR AND WATER IN SOILS. 425 

Too much can not be said in favor of pulverizing the soil ; 
even thorough-draining itself will not supersede the necessity 
of performing this most necessary operation. The whole val- 
uable effects of plowing, harrowing, grubbing, etc., may be 
reduced to this : and almost the whole superiority of garden 
over field produce is referable to the greater perfection tc 
which this pulverizing of the soil can be carried. 

The whole success of the drill-husbandry is owing, in a 
great measure, to its enabling you to stir up the soil well 
during the progress of your crop ; which stirring up is of no 
value beyond its effects in more minutely pulverizing the soil, 
increasing, as far as possible, the size and number of the in- 
terstitial canals. 

Lest any one should suppose that the contents of these 
interstitial canals must be so minute that their whole amount 
can be of but little consequence, I may here notice the fact, 
that, in moderately well pulverized soil, they amount to no 
less than one-fourth of the whole bulk of the soil itself; for 
example, 100 cubic inches of moist soil (that is, of soil in 
which the pores are filled with water while the canals are rilled 
with air), contain no less than 25 cubic inches of air. Ac- 
cording to this calculation, in a field pul^nzed to the depth 
of eight inches, a depth perfectly attainable on most soils by 
careful tillage, every imperial acre will retain beneath its sur- 
face no less than 12,545,280 cubic inches of air. And, to take 
one more element into the calculation, supposing the soil were 
not properly drained, the sufficient pulverizing of an additional 
inch in depth would increase the escape of water from the 
surface by upward of one hundred gallons a day." 
36 



426 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

IMPROVEMENT OP SOILS. 

Manuring. — Much has been said and written about manur- 
ing and manures. Common sense dictates that always abstract- 
ing and never replacing the equivalents taken from the soil, 
must in course of time impoverish it. But we are not prepared 
to admit that the soil in Ohio has been so thoroughly robbed 
of its fertile elements, during the half century of the State's 
transition from the red man's huntin^-oro-und to the white 
man's garden, as to require dosing with patent manures to 
restore it to its virgin fertility. If Ohio's soil is already 
robbed of the principal portion of its productive elements, 
gloomy indeed is the picture which imagination thrusts on us 
of the future. England has been cultivated for a thousand 
years, and her farmers have not been in the habit of manur- 
ing systematically, more than fifty years — and to-day the soil 
there is richer than in Ohio. 

What is required in Ohio, is a different system of culture — 
underdraining, deep culture, and generous manuring with 
farm-yard manure. With this system judiciously practiced 
the soil of this State can go on increasing in fertility for a 
hundred years to come. 

In order to prove that farm-yard manure contains the neces- 
sary elements to be replaced in the soil, we have made a 
rather lengthy extract from a prize essay T , written by Thos. 
Way, on Farm-yard Manure, from the pages of the Journal 
of the Royal Agricultural Society. 

"Drainings of Dung-heaps. — Nobody can deny that farm- 
yard manure is seldom kept in the most efficient manner. In 
many places in England, especially in Devonshire, and in some 



DIIAININCJS Off DUNG- HE APS. 427 

parts of Gloucestershire, it is a common practice to place ma- 
nure-heaps by the roadside, often on sloping ground, and to keep 
these loosely erected heaps for a considerable length of time, 
before carting the dung on the field. On other farms, the 
manure is allowed to remain loosely scattered about in uncov- 
ered yards for months before it is removed. Heavy showers 
of rain falling on manure kept in such a manner, by washing 
out the soluble fertilizing constituents of dung, necessarily 
greatly deteriorate its value. It is well known that the more 
or less dark colored liquids which flow from badly-kept dung- 
heaps, in rainy weather, possess high fertilizing properties. 
According to the rain which falls at the time of collecting 
these drainings, according to the character of the manure, and 
similar modifying circumstances, the composition of the drain- 
ings from dung-heaps is necessarily subject to variations. 
The general character of these liquids, however, is the same 
in dilute and in concentrated drainings. Several samples of 
dung drainings were recently examined by me, and, from this 
analysis it will be seen that they contain a variety of fertilizing 
constituents, which it is most desirable to retain in dung-heaps. 

The first liquid examined was collected from a dung-heap 
composed of well-rotted horse dung, manure from fattening 
beasts, and the dung from sheep pens. Both the horse dung 
and dung from fattening beasts were made in boxes. The 
liquid which ran from this dung-heap was collected in rainy 
weather, and contained, no doubt, in addition to the liquid 
portion of the dung, a good deal of rain. 

The amount of free ammonia (ammonia expelled on boiling 
the liquid) in these drainings was determined in the manner 
described above; and after the free ammonia was removed, 
quick-lime was added to the remainder of the concentrated 
liquid, for the purpose of separating any ammonia present in 
the form of salts, which are not decomposed simply by boiling. 

In this way the following results were obtained : — One im- 
perial gallon of drainings contained 36.25 grains of free ammo- 
nia, and 3.11 grains of ammonia in the form of salts, not 



428 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

decomposed simply in boiling, but by continued boiling with 
quick-lime. Evaporated to dryness, 7,000 grains furnished 
62.51 grains of solid matter, dried at 212° Fahr,; or one impe- 
rial gallon was found to contain 625.10 grains of solid matters. 
On heating to redness, 62.51 grains left 36.89 grains of ash. 
This ash was submitted to a detailed analysis, and calculated 
for one imperial gallon of the drainings. According to the 
analytical results obtained in these different determinations, 
an imperial gallon of these drainings contained — volatile and 
combustible constituents, 395.66. 

'Ammonia driven out in boiling, 36.25 % 

Ammonia, in the state of salts, decomposed bv }■ ° 

■ir oil f 39 - 36 

quick-lime, 3.11 J 

Ulmic and humic acid, 125.50 - 

Carbonic acid, expelled on boiling, 88.20 

Other organic matters (containing 3.59 of nitrogen), 142.60 

395.66 



Cineral matters (ash), 368.98, viz. : 

Soluble silica, 1.50 

Phosphate of lime, with a little phosphate of iron,... 15.81 

Carbonate of lime, 34.91 

Carbonate of magnesia, 25.66 

Sulphate of lime, 4.36 

Chloride of sodium, 45.70 

Chloride of potassium, 70.50 

,. Carbonate of potash, 170.54 



368.98 



Total, per gallon, - - - 764.64 

These analytical results suggest the following remarks : — 

1. It will be seen that these drainings contain a good deal 
of ammonia, which should not be allowed to run to waste. 

2. They also contain phosphate of lime, a constituent not 
present in the urine of animals* The fermentation of the 
dung-heap thus brings a portion of the phosphates contained 
in manure into a soluble state, and enables them to be washed 
out by any watery liquid that comes in contact with them. 



drainings of dung-heaps. 429 

3. Drainings of dung-heaps are rich in alkaline salts, espe* 
cially in the more valuable salts of potash. 

4. By allowing the washings of dung-heaps to run to waste, 
not only ammonia is lost, but also much soluble organic mat- 
ter, salts of potash and other inorganic substances, which enter 
into the composition of our crops, and which are necessary to 
their growth. 

II. Drainings from another Dung -heap. 

These drainings were not so dark colored as the preceding 
ones. Like the former liquid, it was neutral, but gave off 
ammonia on boiling, and on addition of quick-lime. 

Hydrochloric acid produced a dark-brown colored, flaky 
deposit, leaving the liquid only pale yellow. 

The amount of the precipitated humus acid was much 
smaller than in the preceding liquid. 

For-want of a sufficient quantity of liquid, only the amount 
of solid matter contained in it could be determined. 

An imperial gallon on evaporation furnished 353.36 grains 
of solid matter, dried at 212° Fah. 

III. Drainings from a third Dung-heap. 

A dung-heap, composed chiefly of mixed fresh horse, cow's, 
or pig's dung, furnished the material for the third analysis of 
drainings. This liquid was much darker than the two pre- 
ceding liquids, possessed an offensive smell, although it con- 
tained no sulphureted hydrogen. It was neutral to test-paper, 
consequently did not contain any free or carbonate of ammo- 
nia. On heating, ammonia escaped ; apparently, however, in 
much smaller quantities than from the preceding drainings. 
This liquid was collected at a time when no rain had fallen 
for several weeks, which circumstance accounts for its greater 
concentration. It was submitted to the same course of analy- 
sis as the first drainings. 7,000 grs. evaporated to dryness 
produced 135.774 grs. of dry matter ; and this quantity, on 



430 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

burning in a platinum dish, furnished 62.58 grs. of mineral 
matters. A separate portion was used for the determination 
of the amount of the ammonia present in the form of salts ; 
and another portion of liquid, acidulated with a little hydro- 
chloric acid, evaporated to dryness, was employed for the 
determination of the whole amount of nitrogen. By deduct- 
ing the amount of nitrogen found in the ammoniacal salts, 
from the total amount of nitrogen obtained by combustion of 
the solid matter with soda-lime, the proportion of nitrogen 
contained in the organic substances of these drain ings, was 
ascertained. The following table represents the composition 
of the solid substances found in one imperial gallon of drain- 
ings from fresh manures : 

Composition of solid matter in one gallon of drawings from 
fresh farm-yard manure. 

Eeady formed Ammonia (principally present) as") ir-tq 

Jiuniate and ulmate of Ammonia J 

Organic Matter 716.81 

Inorganic matters (ash) 625.80 

Total amount of solid matter in one gallon of drainings 1357.74 

Containing Nitrogen 31.08 

Equal to Ammonia 37.73 

625.80 of ash consisted of: 

Silica , 9.37 

Phosphates of lime and iron 72.65 

Carbonate of lime 59.58 

Sulphate of lime 14.27 

Carbonate of magnesia 9.95 

" " potash 297.38 

Chloride of potassium 60.04 

" " sodium 101.82 

It will be observed that these drainings contain about 
double the amount of solid matter which was found in the 
liquid from the first heap. The composition of this solid 
matter compared with that of the solid matter in the liquid 



MINERAL AND ORGANIC SUBSTANCES IN DUNG. 431 

from the first heap, moreover, presents ns with some particu- 
lars to which it may be advisable briefly to allude. 

In the first place I would remark, that notwithstanding the 
greater concentration of the third liquid, as compared with 
the first, the proportion of ammonia present in the form of 
ammoniacal salts was less, while the drainings from fresh dung 
contained the larger portion of this element in the form of 
soluble organic substances. The most important constituent 
of farm-yard manure, i. e., nitrogen, is thus liable to be wasted 
in the drainings, whether they proceed from rotten or fresh 
manure, for in either case it passes off in a soluble state of 
combination. While speaking of the nitrogen in the drain- 
ings of dung-heaps, I ought to mention that in both the 
liquids examined in detail, I have detected readily the pres- 
ence of nitric acid. In the liquid from fresh manure there 
were apparently mere traces of nitrates, but in that from 
rotten dung the proportion of nitric acid was so considerable 
that I hoped to be able to determine it quantitatively. But I 
found the large amount of soluble organic matter to interfere 
sadly with the nitric acid determination ; and, unable to sup- 
ply for the present correct results, I merely mention the fact 
that these liquids contained nitrates, and trust to be able to 
supply this deficiency in these analyses at a future period. 
In the next place I would observe, that the proportion of 
organic and inorganic matters, bear to each other different 
relations in the first and in the third liquid. 

In the liquid from rotten dung the proportion of mineral 
matter exceeds that of organic substances, and in the third 
liquid the reverse is the case. We learn from this that 
soluble organic matters are very liable to become decomposed ; 
and it is not unlikely that all putrescent organic matters 
before assuming a gaseous state, are first changed into soluble 
matters. 

In the first stage of decomposition, i. e., during the active 
fermentation of dung, the constituents of farm -yard manure 



432 THE WHEAT PLJINT. 

are rendered more and more soluble ; hence up to a certain 
point the amount of soluble organic matters increases in 
manures. But when active fermentation in manure heaps 
becomes gradually less and less energetic, and finally ceases, 
the remaining fermented manure is still liable to great and 
important changes, for it is subject to that slow but steady 
oxidation or slow combustion, which has been termed appro- 
priately, by Liebig, Eremacausis. To this process of slow 
oxidation all orgauic substances are more or less subject. It 
is a gradual combustion which terminates with their final 
destruction. 

Hence the larger portion of organic matter in the liquid 
from the manure heap formed of fresh dung in an active state 
of fermentation,, and the smaller portion of organic matter in 
the drainings of the first heap, in which the dung had passed 
the first stage of decomposition, and been exposed for a con- 
siderable period to the subsequent process of eremacausis or 
slow combustion. The formation of nitric acid from putrefy- 
ing organic matter has long been observed, but the exact con- 
ditions under which it proceeds are by no means satisfactorily 
established, and much room is left to further extend investi- 
gations. 

The mineral substances in the drainings from fresh dung 
are the same as those from rotten. Like the ash of the latter, 
the liquid from fresh dung-heaps contains soluble phosphates, 
soluble silica, and is rich in alkaline salts, especially in car- 
bonate of potash, of which there are nearly 300 grs. in a gallon 
of the liquid. Sufficient evidence is thus presented in the 
analysis of these liquids, that as the drainings of both fresh 
and rotten dung heaps are allowed to flow into the next ditch, 
concentrated solutions of the most valuable constituents of 
dung are carelessly wasted. 

With a view of preventing such a serious loss, I have sug- 
gested the propriety of carting the manure on the fields, when- 
ever practicable, in a fresh state, and of spreading it at once. 



EXTENT OP ABSORBING PROPERTIES OF SOILS. 433 

It may be objected that the application of manure in a fresh 
state, equivalent to winter manuring, and especially the 
spreading of dung, will lead to waste, inasmuch as the rain 
which falls during the winter and spring, has much more 
chance of washing out fertilizing substances from dung than 
by applying it at the time of sowing. This objection would 
indeed be a valid one, if we were not acquainted with the fact 
that all soils containing a moderate proportion of clay 
possess the property of retaining the more valuable constit- 
uents of manure ; but, this being the case, the objection on 
these grounds can not be admitted. With more force, how- 
ever, it may be made with reference to light sandy soils, and 
it is indeed upon such soils that manure is best applied in 
spring. 

In order to ascertain to what extent various soils possessed 
the powers of absorbing manuring constituents from the 
drainings of dung-heaps, I determined to employ a limited 
quantity of soil and a large excess of liquid. To this end, 
two parts by weight of liquid were well mixed with one part 
by weight of soil, and left in contact with the latter for twenty- 
four hours, after which the clear liquid was drawn off and 
passed through a filter. 

Experiments to Ascertain the Extent of Absorbing 
Properties of Soils of known Composition. 

Experiment made with the drainings of dung-heaps 
composed of rotten dung. The drainings employed in this 
experiment were the same which contained in the imperial 
gallon 664.64 grains of solid matter, the detailed composition 
of which is given above. The composition of the soil used 
in the experiment is given below. 

The surface-soil contained a good deal of organic matter, a 
fair proportion of clay, little sand, and a moderate proportion 
of carbonate of lime in the form of small fragments of lime- 
stone. It was a stirhsh soil, belonging to the clay-marls. Its 
subsoil was richer in clay and of a more compact texture and 
37 



434 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

less friable character than the surface-soil. The mechanical 
analyses of soil and subsoil gave the following result : 

Surface-soil. Subsotl. 

Moisture when analyzed 5.66 3.66 

Organic matter and water of combination 25.86 8.79 

Lime 14.30 26.03 

Clay 34.84 56.76 

Sand 19.64 4.76 



100.00 100.00 

In the chemical analysis of this soil the following results 
were obtained : 

Surface-soil. Subsoil. 

Moisture when analyzed 5.36 3.66 

Organic matter and water of combination... 25.86 8.79 

Oxides of iron and alumina 13.88 10.13 

Carbonate of lime ,.. 14.30 26.03 

Sulphate of lime 56 Not Determined. 

Phosphoric acid and chlorine traces 

Carbonate of magnesia 1.04^ 

Potash 07 I 1.67 

Soda 18 J 

Insoluble silicious matter 38.75 49.73 



100.00 100.00 

2,000 grains of this soil and 2,000 grains of subsoil were 
mixed with 4,000 grains of the liquid from rotten dung. 
After twenty-four hours the clear liquid was carefully drawn 
off and filtered. Its original dark-brown color was changed 
into a pale yellow color. This soil thus possessed in a high 
degree the property of decolorizing dark-colored liquids like the 
washings of dung-heaps. 

1,200 grains of the filtered liquid, passed through soil, were 
distilled in a retort nearly to dryness, and the ammonia which 
was given off carefully collected in an apparatus containing 
hydrochloric acid, and so constructed as to secure the perfect 
absorption of ammonia. 



ABSORBING PROPELIi i;s OF SOILS. 435 

The amount of chlorine of ammonia obtained on evapora- 
tion of the acid liquid in the receiving-vessel was .62 grains. 
This gives for one imperial gallon of liquid passed through 
soil 11.49 grains of ammonia. 

Originally the drainings contained, per gallon 39.36 

After nitration through soil they contained, per gallon... 11.49 

Absorbed by 70,000 grains of soil 27.87 am. 

1,000 grains of this soil thus absorbed .396 of ammonia. 

On evaporation of another portion of the same liquid passed 
through soil, one imperial gallon of filtered drainings was 
found to contain 164.88 of organic matter ; 210.20 of inor- 
ganic matter. 

Before filtration through soil, the imperial gallon contained 
268.10 grains of solid organic substances ; 368.98 of minerat 
matters. 

A considerable quantity of both organic and mineral mat- 
ters thus removed from the liquid in contact with the soil. 

A similar experiment was made by diluting 4,000 grains of 
the same drainings with 4,000 grains of distilled water, and 
leaving the more dilute liquid in contact for twenty-four 
hours with 2,000 grains of the same soil, and 2,000 of subsoil. 

The filtered liquid contained in the gallon : 

Ammonia 6.91 

Organic matters 118.50 

Mineral matters 147.36 

Total amount of solid matters in a gallon 272.77 

The 147.36 of mineral matters (ash) consisted of: 

Silica 2.38 

Phosphates of lime and iron 1.54 

Carbonate of lime 79.72 

Carbonate of magnesia 6.17 

Sulphate of lime 7.92 

Chloride of Sodium 18.90 

Chloride of potassium 26.44 

Carbonate of potash 4.29 



436 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Originally the liquid employed in this experiment con- 
tained 19.68 grains of ammonia to the gallon. After passing 
through half its weight of soil, it contained only 6.91 grains 
of ammonia ; consequently 12.77 were retained by 35,000 
grains of soil, and 1,000 grains of the same soil absorbed .396 
grains of ammonia. In both instances it was thus found that 
rather more than two-thirds of the amount of ammonia pres- 
ent in these drainings, in the form of ammoniacal salts, were 
retained by a very limited quantity of soil. I have purposely 
used a large amount of liquid in comparison with that of soil. 
If under such conditions, the soil is capable of retaining two- 
thirds of the whole amount of ammonia present in a liquid 
like the one examined, it is not too much to expect that no 
ammonia whatever will be lost in practice by carting manure 
on the fields in autumn, and spreading it at once. The quan- 
tity of soluble ammoniacal matters in a heavy dressing of the 
best dung does not amount to many pounds, and such a quan- 
tity, in relation to the weight of the soil ready to take up 
ammonia from the manure, is so insignificant that the most 
scrupulous may rest satisfied that in a soil containing even a 
small proportion of clay no ammonia will be lost by dressing 
the fields in autumn. 

Other no less important changes than those referring to the 
absorption of ammonia will strike the reader to have taken 
place in these drainings left in contact with the soil. For 
better comparison sake, I will give the composition of the 
drainings before and after passing through soil, and then 
make a few additional remarks which are suggested by such a 
comparison. 

Composition or Drainings from Rotten Dung. 
One imperial gallon contains : 

Before filtration .«„ «*_,«__ 
through soil. After filtratlon - 

Ammonia (in the form of ammoniacal salts).. 19.68 6.91 

Organic matter 134.05 118.50 



DRAININGS FROM ROTTEN DUNG. 437 

Silica 75 2.38 

Phosphate of lime and iron 7.90 1.54 

Carbonate of lime 17.46 79.72 

Sulphate of lime.;..... 2.18 7.92 

Carbonate of magnesia 12.83 6.17 

Chloride of sodium 22.85 18.90 

Chloride of potassium 35.25 26.44 

Carbonate of potash 85.27 4.29 



338.22 272.77 

It will be observed that this liquid, in passing through the 
soil, has undergone a striking change. Leaving unnoticed 
several minor alterations in the composition of the original 
liquid, I would direct special attention to the very small pro- 
portion of carbonate of potash left in the draining after con- 
tact with this soil. It will be seen that, out of eighty-five 
grains of potash contained in the original liquid, no less than 
eighty-one grains have been retained by the soil. This is a 
result of the greatest importance, inasmuch as it shows that 
the soil possesses, in a remarkable degree, the power of remov- 
ing from highly mixed manuring substances, not only am- 
monia from ammoniacal salts, but also the no less important 
soluble potash compounds. According to this result, 1,000 
grains of soil absorb no less than 2.313 grains of carbonate 
of potash. 

But, in addition to carbonate of potash, a considerable 
quantity of chloride of potassium is retained in this soil by 
passing the washings from rotten dung through it ; for it will 
be observed that nearly nine grains of this salt, or in exact 
numbers, 8.81, were retained in the soil. 

The avidity of the soil for soluble salts of potash is the 
more remarkable, as it offers a striking contrast to the appa- 
rent indifference of this soil to absorb soda from its soluble 
combinations ; for it will be seen that the liquid, after filtra- 
tion through the soil, contains only about four grains less of 
common salt in the gallon than before filtration. 

In a purely chemical point of view, soda salts are closely 



438 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

allied to salts of potash, and yet there is a marked difference 
observable in the power of this soil, at least, to absorb the 
one or the other alkali. 

As regards the practical effect which salts of soda and potash 
are capable of displaying with reference to the nutrition of 
plants, the former are not to be compared to the latter in 
point of efficacy. It was believed at one time that soda was 
capable of replacing potash in the ashes of our crops, but this 
opinion was not based on trustworthy evidence. On the con- 
trary, the best and most extensive series of ash analyses of 
our crops show that while the amount of potash, within cer- 
tain limits, is constant in the ashes of plants, that of soda, 
especially of chloride of sodium, is liable to great fluctuations, 
arising, no doubt, from local conditions of the soil. 

The fact that soils are capable of absorbing potash from 
soluble manuring matters, while no special care is manifested 
by them to retain the equally soluble soda salts, appears to 
me to account, to some extent at least, for the comparative 
constancy of the amount of potash in the ashes of our crops, 
as well as for the fluctuations of the amount of soda in the 
same. The power of soils to retain potash in large propor- 
tions must have the effect of converting the salts of potash in 
the manure applied to the land into compounds which, though 
not altogether insoluble in water, are yet sufficiently difficult 
of solution to permit only a limited and fixed quantity to 
enter into the vegetable organism in a given period. The 
case is different with salts of soda ; for as soils do not appear 
to retain them in any high degree, and plants have no select- 
ing power, but absorb by endosmosis whatever is presented to 
the spongioles of their roots in a state of perfect solution, it 
is evident that more soda will enter into the plants when 
grown on a soil naturally abounding in this alkali or heavily 
dressed with common salt, than when grown upon a soil 
poorer in soda. 

We have here at the same time an interesting illustration 
of the fact, that the soil is the great work-shop in which food is 



DRAININGS FROM ROTTEN DUNG. 439 

prepared for plants, and that we can only then hope to attain 
unto a more perfect knowledge of the nutrition of plants, and 
the best means of administering to their special wants, when 
we shall have studied, in all their details, the remarkable 
changes which we know, through the investigations of Mr. 
Thompson and Professor Way, take place in soils when ma- 
nuring substances are brought into contact with them. The 
subject is full of practical interest, but also surrounded by 
great difficulties, which, it appears to me, can only be over- 
come when the investigation is taken up in a truly scientific 
spirit, without reference to the direct application which, in 
due course, no doubt, well established chemical principles will 
receive in agriculture. It is the undue anxiety to obtain at 
once what is popularly called a practical result — the grasping- 
after results which may at once be translated into so many 
bushels of corn — which is a great hindrance to the more rapid 
advancement of agricultural science ; and it is to be hoped, 
for the sake of the true interests of the really practical man, 
that the voice of those capable of understanding and appreci- 
ating purely scientific results, will be sufficiently powerful to 
keep in check the too great anxiety for immediate results. 

In the next place, I beg to direct attention to the absorp- 
tion by the soil of the phosphates contained in drainings. If 
it is borne in mind that the soil and subsoil with which the 
liquid was brought into contact, contained a large excess of 
carbonate of lime, it is not more than would naturally be ex- 
pected, if we should see the soluble phosphates of the original 
drainings converted by the carbonate of lime into insoluble 
compounds. 

Having already remarked upon the power of this soil to 
retain ammonia, I beg in conclusion to point out the large 
quantity of carbonate of lime in the filtered liquid as worthy 
of notice. This large amount of carbonate of lime is easily 
explained by the presence of much lime in the soil. Before 
filtration the liquid contained only about 17-J grains of car- 
bonate of lime, and after filtration as much as nearly 80 



440 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

grains. Thus while potash and ammonia arc absorbed by the 
soil, lime is dissolved and passes into the liquid, which is fil- 
tered through the soil. Not only is the quantity of carbonate 
of lime considerably increased in the filtered drainings, but 
that of sulphate of lime in a minor degree also. 

It is highly satisfactory to me to find the observations of 
Professor Way, with respect to the relative power of soils to 
retain ammonia, potash, soda and lime, confirmed in my experi- 
ments with a liquid containing a number of fertilizing agents 
required by our crops. 

Before describing the next filtration experiments, I may 
state that I have thought it a matter of some interest to exam- 
ine what amount of solid organic and inorganic matter to a 
given quantity of pure water would dissolve from the soil, the 
composition of which has been stated above. Accordingly, one 
part by weight of subsoil, and one part of surface soil, were 
mixed with four parts by weight of distilled water, and the 
whole, being occasionally stirred up, left to subside for twenty- 
four hours, after which time the water was filtered from the 
soil, and carefully analyzed. 

An imperial gallon of this water was found to contain 84.88 
grains of dry residue (dried at 220° Fah.), consisting of — 

Organic matter, and a little water of combination,... 48.00 

Carbonate of lime, 26.84 

Sulphate of lime, 5.73 

Phosphate of lime, with a little oxide of iron, 65 

Carbonate of magnesia, 50 

Chloride of sodium, 1.25 

Potash, 99 

Silica, 92 

84.88 
The amount of organic matter in this water is very great ; 
it arises from the great excess of decomposing organic remains 
in the soil, and imparted to the water a yellow color and disa- 
greeable smell, not unlike the smell of water in which flax is 
steeped. It will be further observed, that even pure rain- 



FILTRATION OF FARM-YARD MANURE. 441 

water is capable of rendering soluble a considerable quantity 
of all those mineral constituents which are found in the ashes 
of our crops, and therefore are necessary to their growth. 

2. Filtration experiment made icith the draining* of a dung- 
heap composed of fresh mixed Farm-yard Manure. — Having 
ascertained in the previous filtration experiments, that a soil 
containing a good deal of clay and lime is capable of remov- 
ing from compound manuring substances all the more valuable 
fertilizing constituents, I was anxious to determine to what 
extent soils deficient in both clay and lime, possessed the 
property of retaining fertilizing substances from drainings of 
•dung-heaps. The composition of the liquid used for this 
experiment is given above ; it is the same liquid collected 
from a fresh dung-heap, which in a gallon contained 1,357.74 
grains of solid matter. The soil selected for experiment was 
a light, sandy, red-colored, very porous soil, containing, as will 
be seen by the following analysis, only little clay, and still 
less lime, but a good deal of organic matter. It was submitted 
to a minute and careful mechanical and chemical analysis, and 
furnished the results embodied in the subjoined tables : — 

I. Mechanical Analysis. 

Moisture, 3.45 

Organic matter, and water of combination, 13.94 

Coarse, white, quartz sand, 47.00 

Fine, red sand, and a little clay deposited from water 

on standing five minutes, 19.82 

Coarse clay, deposited on standing ten minutes, 2.82 

Fine clay, deposited from water on standing one hour, 6.30 
Finest clay, kept in suspension in water, after stand- 
ing longer than one hour, 6.67 

100.00 

It appears from these results, that nearly half the weight of 
this soil consists of pure white, coarse, quartz-sand, which can 
be readily separated by washing. The deposit which set- 
tled from water, after five minutes standing, consists chiefly 



442 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

of fine, red sand, mixed with very little clay. The remainder 
is clay in a very finely subdivided stale, besides humus, and 
some water of combination. The result of the mechanical 
examination thus shows that the proximate constituents of 
this soil are present in an advanced state of decomposition. 
In the following tabular statement the minute chemical com- 
position of the same soil is given : — 

II. Chemical Analysis. 

Moisture, 3.45 

-■Organic matter, and water of combination,.. 13.94 

Carbonate of lime, .. .31 1 Containing 

( together 
Sulphate of lime, 06 ) .39 of lime. 

(Containing S. 0. 3 37) 

Alumina, 14.74 

Oxide of iron, 5.87 

Magnesia, 18 

Potash (in a state of silicate), 25 

Chloride of sodium, 11 

Phosphoric acid, combined with iron and 

alumina (equal to bone-earth, 131),... .061 

Soluble silica (soluble in dilute potash), 7.42 

Insoluble siliceous matters (almost entirely 

white sand), 53.32 

100.181 

*Containing nitrogen, 192 

Equal to ammonia, 228 

5,000 grains of this soil were mixed with 5,000 grains of 
liquid from a fresh manure heap, and 5,000 grains of distilled 
water. After twenty-four hours the clear liquid was filtered 
from the soil, and found to be somewhat lighter colored than 
before; but, in comparison with the decolorizing properties of 
the clay soils, used in the experiment, with the drainings from 
rotten dung, its effect upon the dark -colored organic com- 
pounds in the liquid appeared to be weak. 

A portion of the filtered liquid was used for the determina- 
tion of the ammonia contained in it, in the form of volatile 



ANALYSES OF FILTERED MANURE. 443 

salts, or, at any rate, in the form of salts which yield ammonia 
on boiling their watery solution. 

Another portion was evaporated to dryness, and the amount 
of nitrogen in the dry residue determined. The rest of the 
liquid was Used for the determination of solid matter and ash. 

Leaving unnoticed the details of these various determina- 
tions, I shall state at once the composition of the drainings 
passed through this light sandy soil. I may observe, however, 
that the ammonia and nitrogen, as well as the total amount 
of solid matter and ash in it, were determined twice, and 
closely agreeing results were obtained. An imperial gallon of 
liquid from fresh manure passed through red sandy soil con- 
tained : 

Ready formed ammonia (chiefly as ulmate and huinate of 

ammonia), 7.13 

• Organic matter, 301.70 

•* Inorganic matter (ash), 245.70 



Total amount of solid matter per gallon of liquid, 554.53 

Containing nitrogen, 12.60 

Equal to ammonia, 15.30 

The ash (245 grains) consisted of: 

Silica, 15.08 

Phosphate of lime and iron, 33.14 

Carbonate of lime, 21.22 

Sulphate of lime, trace. 

Carbonate of magnesia 2.36 

Carbonate of potash, 85.93 

Chloride of potassium, 39.49 

Chloride of sodium, 48.48 

It appears distinctly from these result that this soil possessed 
the power of absorbing manuring matters in a much smaller 
degree than the stiflfer soil used in the preceding experiment. 
This agrees well with previous observations, in which it was 
found that soils in which sand greatly preponderates, exhibit 



444 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

these useful absorbing properties in the least, and others in 
which clay preponderates, in the highest degree. 

The soil used in the last experiment, it is true, contains a fair 
proportion of alumina ; but this alumina exists principally in a 
free state, or at all events it is so loosely united with silica that 
it can be easily separated from this combination by dilute acids. 
The absorbing properties of soil, it thus appears, do not 
depend so much on the alumina contained in soils in a free 
state, but as shown already by Professor Way, rather in pecu- 
liar combinations, into the composition of which alumina 
enters. It is more than probable likewise that the different 
agricultural clays contain double silicates, to which Professor 
"Way refers the absorbing properties of soils, in very variable 
proportions, and that consequently the agricultural capabilities 
of soils, so far as they are dependent upon these important 
properties, can not merely be ascertained by determining the 
proportion of clay which they contain. In short, the mere 
analysis of soils is not calculated to give us a fair idea of their 
true characters ; nor does it appear to me to afford sufficient 
indications of what is really wanting in a soil in order to 
make it yield up heavy crops. 

The nature of the changes which these drainings from 
fresh farm-yard manure underwent in contact with the soil, 
the analysis of which has just been given, will appear by 
glancing at the subjoined diagram, in which the composition 
of these drainings is stated before and after filtration through 
soil. An imperial gallon of liquid contained : 

BEFORE FILTRATION AFTER FILTRATION 

Through Soil. 

Ready formed ammonia, 7.67 7.13 

Organic matters, 358.40 301.70 

Inorganic matter (ash), 312.90 245.70 

Total am't of eolid matter per gallon, 678.97 554.53 

Containing nitrogen, 15.54 12.60 

Equal to ammonia, 18.86 15.30 



SOME SOILS DO NOT ABSORB READILY. 445 

BEFORE FILTRATION AFTER FILTRATION 

Through Soil. 

Silica, 4.75 15.08 

Phosphate of lime and iron, 36.32 33.14 

Carbonate of lime, 29.79 21.22 

Sulphate of lime, 7.14 trace. 

Carbonate of magnesia, 4.98 2.36 

Carbonate of potash, 148.69 85.93 

Chloride of potassium, 30.32 39.49 

Chloride of sodium, 50.91 48.48 



'-£&- 



Total of ash, 312.90 245.70 



The amount of ready-formed ammonia retained by this 
soil, it will be seen, is very trifling indeed ; nor is the pro- 
portion of nitrogen, which is retained in the soil in the form 
of nitrogenized organic matters, very great. We are thus 
presented here with an instance, showing clearly that there 
are soils which do not possess the power of absorbing ammonia 
in any marked degree. In the case of such soils as the one 
used in this experiment, I think it would be hazardous to apply 
manure in autumn. I may also mention a curious circum- 
stance in connection with this soil. I am informed that guano 
and ammoniacal manures do not seem to do much good on 
this soil, while the application of niter is followed with 
marked effect. 

The most decided change in the composition of this liquid 
is observable in the proportion of potash which is contained 
in the filtered liquid ; for as in the case of the former soil, a 
considerable quantity of this alkali has been absorbed by the 
sandy soil. On the other hand, there is only a trifling amount 
less chloride of sodium in the liquid after than before filtra- 
tion, thus affording another proof that the power of soils to 
absorb potash is much greater than to retain soda. It will 
likewise be observed that, instead of yielding carbonate of 
lime to the liquid which was brought into contact with the 
light soil, some carbonate of lime and all the sulphate of 
lime were actually retained. This soil, it will be remembered, 
is deficient in lime. Perhaps it may not even contain sufn- 



446 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

cient to supply the wants of some crops, and seems to be en- 
dowed with the property of absorbing lime from manuring 
matters, affording thereby an interesting instance how special 
provision is made in soils for the absorption of those con- 
stituents which are naturally deficient in them, and which are 
required in considerable quantities for the healthy and luxu- 
riant growth of our crops. 

In the preceding experiment just the opposite took place ; 
for it will be remembered that the drainings, after passing 
through the calcareous clay soil, contained a great deal more 
of lime than before filtration. Similar differences will be 
observed with respect to other constituents originally present 
in the liquid and retained in the stiff and in the sandy soil in 
very different proportions. I abstain from noticing any 
minor changes in the composition of the filtered liquid, nor 
shall I indulge in any speculations respecting the compounds 
in the soil which have contributed to these changes, and the 
new combinations in the soil which may have resulted from 
them. Our present knowledge on the subject is far too im- 
perfect to warrant us to theorize profitably on these matters ; 
I therefore prefer to send forth for the present my analytical 
results without any further comment, and conclude by ex- 
pressing the hope that I may be permitted to continue similar 
inquiries into the physiology of soils, and do not doubt that 
great and important practical benefits will, in due course, 
be derived from increased knowledge of the properties of soils 
and the changes manuring matters undergo when in contact 
with them.* 

Manuring the Wheat Crop. 

In the palmy days of wheat-growing in Western and Cen- 
tral New York, says the Country Gentleman, the application 
of active manures directly to this crop was not generally prac- 
ticed. The opinion widely prevailed that such a course was 
injurious, by stimulating a heavy growth of straw at the ex- 

* The above article on the absorbing qualities of soils, was written by Prof. Voelcker, 
and wrongly credited to Prof. Way. 



BAHN-YAIiD MAHUK'E F©Ll WHEAT. 447 

pense of the grain, and in the rankness and succulency of the 
former, increasing the liability to lodge, and tending also to 
produce rust and mildew in the standing grain. In some 
instances, no doubt, high manuring has been followed by such 
results, but in many more, large crops of wheat have rewarded 
the application. We took occasion some eight years ago, to 
urge the subject upon the attention of our brother farmers, 
and the current of events influencing the wheat crop during 
that time, has brought it far more forcibly upon their attention. 

We throw away our seed and labor, now-a-days, in sowing 
any but rich, warm, quick soils to wheat. We must get a 
large growth of healthy, early maturing plants, or the wheat 
midge will destroy the whole product. This we have urged in 
a former article, and will revert more strictly to the subject 
indicated in our heading. 

Of all grains, says chemical analysis, wheat has in it more 
nitrogenous substances than any other. Fifteen per cent, of 
the organic matter of the grain of wheat belongs to this class. 
Although the straw may grow luxuriantly, the grain can not 
be formed without it. " Up to the formation of the kernels," 
says a writer on this subject, " ordinary soils, with rain, dew, 
and air, can furnish and grow the wheat plant. But when it 
comes to the fruiting part, the plant has to seek in the soil 
for materials out of which to fabricate its seed. It is neces- 
sary, therefore, that there be in such soil what we farmers call 
nutritive or putrescent manure — something out of which nit- 
rogen can be formed." This is furnished in barn-yard manure, 
and other fertilizers of like character. These in a partially 
decomposed state (and hence furnishing almost immediately 
nutriment for the crop), we would apply to favorable soils be- 
fore sowing them with wheat. 

Many farmers have been in the habit of applying their 
stock of yard manure in a green or long state in the spring, 
to land intended for corn ; reserving little or none for com- 
posting, or for application to the wheat crop. But this prac- 
tice is becoming less general, and we now find frequently 



448 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

those who prefer keeping the manure in the yard until well 
decomposed, and placing it in heaps for use the next season ; 
applying it also upon winter grain, if they sow it, and as a 
top-dressing for grass land. This course is usually very suc- 
cessful. Though land heavily manured for corn, will produce 
good crops of wheat and barley following, it is seldom that 
the area which may be so manured and devoted, embraces 
half the extent we desire for growing grain, which would prc- 
duce it if enriched sufficiently. Hence we see that we need 
more manure, as well as to study the most effective application 
of the same. 

More manure may be had by composting that obtained from 
our farm stock with vegetable mold — the muck of swamps and 
marshes — the turf and wash of roads — the scrapings of ponds 
and ditches. We have doubled the amount and value of our 
yard manure by mixing it with muck from the swamp, and 
fermenting the same together in heaps loosely laid up and 
properly moistened. This was used at the rate of twelve loads 
per acre on land sown in wheat last autumn, being merely 
gang-plowed in before sowing. A small plot not dressed, 
shows a very marked difference — the growth is less than half 
of that on the manured portion, and the product will be of 
little if of any value. 

AYe hope the lesson of the past few years will not be lost 
on those who begin, after all, to think the wheat midge less 
the enemy of the farmer than his own improvident course in 
cropping with this grain. If it shall induce us to a better 
enriching and cultivation of the soil, and a more careful 
study of the nature and demands of our different crops, it 
will prove to the country at large a blessing and not a curse. 
If it leads the mass of farmers, as it has many of them, to 
employ every available means of increasing the quantity and 
quality of the manure made upon their farms, and to study 
attentively the most effective application of the same for grow- 
ing the most profitable crops, it will do more for the advance- 
ment of agriculture than almost any other means which are 



DRAINAGE. 449 

likely to be employed. We would therefore urge immediate 
attention to the preparation of manure for applying to the 
wheat crop, and from our own experience arid observation, 
think that composted manure, mixed with the surface soil by 
harrowing or very shallow plowing, will prove of the greatest 
benefit to the crop. This method is practiced by the most 
successful wheat-growers of the present day. 

Drainage. 

There are comparatively very few soils which do not require 
drainage. The benefits and advantages resulting from drain- 
age even on the best soils are so numerous and extended in 
their details, that it would require a volume rather than a few 
pages to discuss this subject properly. We shall content 
ourselves for the present on this subject, by making a few 
extracts from writers of acknowledged ability and practical 
observation, reserving what we may have to say in detail 
for a separate work. 

It is a curious and apparently a paradoxical observationX 
says Johnston, that draining often improves a soil on which the 
crops are liable to be burned up in seasons of drought. Yet, / 
upon a little consideration, the fact becomes very intelligibleA 
Suppose that the surface-soil extend to a certain line, while \ 
below this there is a subsoil in which the water stagnates. \ 
The roots will readily penetrate to the line between these two 
soils, but they will in general refuse to descend further, 
because of the unwholesomeness of soil where water stagnates, 
(not to mention the mechanical opposition to their further 
progress). Let a dry season come, arid their roots having 
little depth, the plants will be more speedily burned up. But 
lower the level at which water stagnates, or remove it 
altogether by working the subsoil, the rains will then freely 
wash the subsoil, and the roots will descend into it, so that if 
a drought come again, it may parch the soil above, as before, 
without injuring the plants, since now they are watered and 
fed by the soil beneath. 
38 



450 TTTE WHEAT PLANT. 

If science ucver wrote another sentence applicable to our 
agriculture, the one just quoted from an able pen would be 
invaluable, if duly weighed and acted upon. Many portions of 
the State, we are aware, do not require drainage according to the 
view generally entertained of the word ; but there is no doubt 
that many spots, even those of the finest, might be improved 
by the judicious introduction of drains, just to create a 
circulation through them; and we feel perfectly convinced 
that persons act most erroneously and in direct opposition to 
all reason and science, in refusing to work upon our soil and 
in forcing our crops to grow in shallow plowed soil, with a 
subsoil as hard as baked ware, and almost equally as impervi- 
ous to the tender roots. Once more hear Professor Johnston, 
for the matter can not be too much enlarged upon : H Enable 
the water to travel downward, and the air from above will 
follow it, and take its place among the pores of the soil, car- 
rying to every root the salutary influences it is appointed to 
bear with it, wherever it penetrates. When this is done, the 
stiff soil will become mellow, and, when once stirred up to a 
considerable depth, more universally porous, so that air 
can make its way everywhere, and the roots can easily 
extend themselves in every direction. The presence of 
\ vegetable matter, whether existing naturally in a soil thus 
physically altered, or artificially added to it, becomes of 
double value." To facilitate these beneficial actions, the Pro- 
fessor strongly advises the use of what is called the subsoil 
plow, which breaks up the subsoil and renders it pervious to 
the air and water, and still more strongly the process of deep 
plowing, which, in addition to other advantages, "brings up 
new earth to the surface, thus forms a deeper soil, and more or 
less alters its physical qualities and chemical composition." 
But we must leave it to those who think it worth while to 
pursue the subject (and may they be many), to consult his 
lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, or his smaller work, the 
Elements of Practical Chemistry, which will amply repay the 
outlay and trouble. We can not, however, deny ourself the 



DRAINAGE CAUSES INDEPENDENCE OF WEATHER. 451 

satisfaction of quoting some remarks of a practical man on 
this subject, not only because of their intrinsic value, but 
because they show what progress practical men are making 
in the science of agriculture, and place the stamp of experi- 
ence on the suggestions and reasonings of the man of science. 
In an article on the culture of land for wheat, by Mr. Morton 
(author of an excellent work on soils), in a late number of the 
Agricultural Gazette, it is said, " When land is plowed only 
to the depth of three or four inches, the active soil is so very 
limited, that the least change in the weather is injurious to 
the plants growing in it. The manure, under this system of 
shallow plowing, forms a layer near the surface ; the roots 
of the plants ramify only through the furrow slice in which 
the dung is placed, and consequently the plant has but little 
hold of the ground. Being thus spread out horizontally 
near the surface, the roots are easily exposed to the weather and 
its influence ; in a dry season the shallow soil, and the manure in 
it, becomes parched and inactive ; in wet weather the roots 
having but little hold of the ground, a soaking rain and a 
little wind loosen the plant and it is blown out. In a deeply 
cultivated soil the plant exerts the whole of its energy at first, 
in the production of roots, which strike deeply into the soil, 
filling the whole of it with their minute fibers. 

" Upon the arrival of genial weather, the organs of the leaves 
being excited are prepared for vigorous and luxuriant growth ; 
and a wide field having been laid under cultivation for the 
purpose, the roots easily provide the nourishment required to 
support them under it. If, under such a system, a plant be 
pulled up, it will be found that the roots have ramified so 
extensively that no variation of temperature can affect them : 
they draw their nourishment from sources beyond the influ- 
ences of the variableness of external agents. Thus, deep cul- 
tivation, by encouraging depth of rooting, effects indirectly 
for the plant a comparative independence of the weather, but 
it has a direct influence in the same direction, for if the 
weather be wet, the water more readily passes down to the 



\ 



/ 452 thk wheat l-lant. 

. drains, and if it be dry. it retains for a hnujer tfm* a siijfici* itey 
of moisture. Of two crops equally luxuriant in their growth, 
that is not so liable to lodge which is grown on the deeper soil ; 
for its growth has been more gradual and natural, and less the 
result of artificial excitement. Of course, it must be under- 

\ stood that deep cultivation can safely be entered upon only in 
soils that are naturally or artificially dry," This last is a pre- 
caution more necessary to be given in England than with us ; 
but altogether, though authorities might be multiplied on 
this head to an almost indefinite extent, yet we should hardly 
find anything more applicable to our case or more clearly 
expressed. We would recommend the careful perusal of the 
fifty-second section of Mr. Morton's valuable work on soil, 
where the subject is clearly treated and its advantages strongly 
put. 
, It will not be amiss to quote one short sentence from Liebig 

/ on this subject : " In hot summers," says he, " accompanied 
by light and partial showers of rain, porous soils of no great 
fertility yield often better crops than richer stiff soils. The 
rain falling on the porous soil is immediately absorbed and 
reaches the roots, while that falling on the heavy soil is evap- 
orated before it is able to penetrate them." 

Drainage improves the quality of crops. In a dry season, 
we frequently hear the farmer boast of the quality of his 
products. His hay-crop, he says, is light, but will "spend " 
much better than the crop of a wet season ; his potatoes are 
not large, but they are sound and mealy. Indeed, this topic 
need not be enlarged upon. Every farmer knows that his 
wheat and corn are heavier and more sound when grown upon 
land sufficiently drained. 

Drainage prevents drought. This proposition is somewhat 
startling at first view. How can draining land make it more 
moist? One would as soon think of watering land to make 
it dry. A brought is the enemy we all dread. Professor 
Espy has a plan for producing rain, by lighting extensive 
artificial fires. A great objection to his theory is, that he can 



MOISTURE IN APPARENTLY DRY .SOIL. 153 

not limit his showers to his own land, and all the public 
would never be ready for a shower on the same day. If we 
can really protect our land from drought by underdraining 
it, everybody may at once engage in the work without offense 
to his neighbor. 

If we take up a handful of rich soil of almost any kind, 
after a heavy rain, we can squeeze it hard enough with the 
hand to press out drops of water. If we should take of the 
same soil a large quantity, after it was so dry that not a drop 
of w T ater could be pressed out by hand, and subject it to the 
pressure of machinery, we should force from it more water. 
Any boy who has watched the process of making cider with 
the old-fashioned press, has seen the pomace after it had been 
once pressed apparently dry and cut down, and the screw 
applied anew to the " cheese," give out quantities of juice. 
These facts illustrate, first, how much water may be held in 
the soil by attraction. They ahow, again, that more water is 
held by a pulverized and open soil, than by a compact and 
close one. Water is held in the soil between the minute 
particles of earth. If these particles be pressed together 
compactly, there is no space left between them for water. The 
same is true of soil naturally compact. This compactness 
exists more or less in most subsoils, certainly in all through 
which w T ater does not readily pass. Hence, all these subsoils 
are rendered more permeable to water by being broken up 
and divided ; and more retentive by having the particles of 
which they are composed separated, one from another — in a 
word, by pulverization. This increased capacity to contain 
moisture by attraction, is the greatest security against 
drought. The plants in a dry time send their rootlets 
throughout the soil, and flourish in the moisture thus stored 
up for their time of need. The pulverization of drained land 
may be produced, partly by deep or subsoil plowing, which is 
always necessary to perfect the object of thorough-draining; 
but it is much aided in stiff clays, also, by the shrinkage of 
the soil by drying. 



454 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Drainage resists drought, again, by the very deepening of 
the soil of which we have already spoken. The roots of 
plants, we have seen, will not extend into stagnant water. 
If, then, as is frequently the case, even on sandy plains, the 
water-line be, in early spring, very near the surface, the seed 
may be planted, may vegetate, and throw up a goodly show of 
leaves and stalks, which may flourish as long as the early rains 
continue ; but suddenly, the rains cease ; the sun comes out 
in his June brightness; the water-line lowers at once in the 
soil ; the roots have no depth to draw moisture from below, 
and the whole field of clover, or of corn, in a single week, is 
past recovery. Now, if this light, sandy soil be drained, so 
that, at the first start of the crop, there is a deep seed-bed 
free from water, the roots strike downward at once, and thus 
prepare for a drought. The writer has seen upon deep- 
trenched land in his own garden, parsnips which, before mid- 
summer, had extended downward three feet, before they were 
as large as a common whiplash ; and yet, through the summer 
drought, continued to thrive till they attained in autumn a 
length, including tops, of about seven feet, and an extraor- 
dinary size. A moment's reflection will satisfy any one that 
the dryer the soil in spring, the deeper will the roots strike, 
and the better able will be the plant to endure the summer's 
drought. 

Again, drainage and consequent pulverization and deep- 
ening of the soils increase their capacity to absorb moisture 
from the atmosphere, and thus afford protection against 
drought. Watery vapor is constantly, in all dry weather, 
rising from the surface of the earth; and plants, in the day- 
time, are also from their leaves and bark, giving off moisture 
which they draw from the soil. But Nature has provided a 
wonderful law of compensation for this waste, which would, 
without such provision, parch the earth to barrenness in a 
single rainless month. 

The capacity of the atmosphere to take up and convey 
water, furnishes one of the grandest illustrations of the 



DRAINAGE PREVENTS DROUGHT. 455 

perfect work of the Author of the Universe. "All the 
rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full ; " and the sea 
is not lull, because the numerous great rivers and their mill- 
ions of tributaries, ever flowing from age to age, convey to 
the ocean only as much water as the atmosphere carries back 
in vapor, and discharges upon the hills. The warmer the 
atmosphere, the greater its capacity to hold moisture. The 
heated, thirsty air of the tropics drinks up the water of the 
ocean, and bears it away to the colder regions, where, through 
condensation by cold, it becomes visible as a cloud ; and as a 
huge sponge pressed by an invisible hand, the cloud, con- 
densed still further by cold, sends down its water to the earth 
in rain. 

The heated air over our fields and streams, in summer, is 
loaded with moisture as the sun declines. The earth has 
been cooled by radiation of its heat, and by constant evapora- 
tion through the day. By contact with the cooler soil, the 
air, borne by its thousand currents gently along its surface, is 
condensed, and yields its moisture to the thirsty earth again, 
in the form of dew. 

At a Legislative Agricultural Meeting, held in Albany, 
New York, January 25th, 1855, " the great drought of 1854 " 
being the subject, the Secretary stated that " the experience 
of the past season has abundantly proved that thorough- 
drainage upon soils requiring it, has been proved a very great 
relief to the farmer ; " that " crops upon such lands have been 
far better, generally, than those upon undrained lands in the 
same locality; " and that, "in many instances, the increased 
crop has been sufficient to defray the expenses of the improve- 
ment in a single year." 

Mr. Joseph Harris, at the same meeting, said, " An under- 
drained soil will be found damper in dry weather than an 
undrained one, and the thermometer shows a drained soil 
warmer in cold weather, and cooler in hot weather, than one 
which is undrained." 



V 



456 THE WllKAT PLANT. 

The Secretary of the New York State Agricultural Society, 
in his report for 1855, says: "The testimony of farmers in 
different sections of the State, is almost unanimous, that 
drained lands have suffered far less from drought than un- 
drained." Alleghany county reports that "drained lands 
have been less affected by the drought than undrained ; " 
Chatauque county, that " the drained lands have stood the 
drought better than the undrained." The report from Clin- 
ton county says : " Drained lands have been less affected by 
the drought than undrained." Montgomery county reports : 
* " We find that drained lands have a better crop in either wet 
or dry seasons than undrained." 

B. F. Nourse, of Orrington, Maine, says that on his drained 
lands, in that State, " during the drought of 1854, there was 
at all times sufficient dampness apparent on scraping the 
surface of the ground with his foot in passing, and a crop of 
beans was planted, grown and gathered therefrom, without as 
much rain as will usually fall in a shower of fifteen minutes' 
duration, while vegetation on the next field was parching for 
lack of moisture. 

A committee of the New York Farmers' Club, which visited 
/ the farm of Prof. Mapes, in New Jersey, in the time of a 
severe drought in 1855, reported that the Professor's fences 
were the boundaries of the drought, all the lands outside 
being affected by it, while his remained free from injury. 
This was attributed, both by the committee and by Prof. 
Mapes himself, to thorough-drainage and deep tillage with 
the subsoil plow. 

Mr. Shedd, in the N. E. Farmer, says : 

" A simple illustration will show the effect which stagnant 
water, within a foot or two of the surface, has on the roots of 
plants. 

" Perhaps it will aid the reader who doubts the benefit 
of thorough-draining in a case of drought, to see why it is 
beneficial. 



DRAINAGE PREVENTS DROUGHT. 



457 



Section of Land before 
it id Dkained. 



Section of Land after 
it is Drained. 




- 



IliiliiSi' 








^^^^Vr^i^ijpij, 



•■•■■' yi- 
1 il liiiiii' 






illlll|i|i;^l!!i;i!i'![ll!;i l;# 



Fig. 2.".. Fig. 26. 

" In the first figure, 1 represents the surface-soil, through 
which evaporation takes place, using up the heat which might 
otherwise go to the roots of plants ; b, represents the water- 
table, or surface of stagnant water below which roots seldom 
go ; a, water of evaporation ; b, water of capillary attraction , 
c, water of drainage, or stagnant water. 

u In the second figure, 1 represents the surface-soil warmed 
by the sun and summer rains; 2, the water-table nearly four 
feet below the surface — roots of the wheat plant have been 
traced to a depth of more than four feet in a free mold; d, 
water of capillary attraction ; e, water of drainage, or stag- 
nant water." t 
39 



458 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



Seeding. 



After the ground has been properly prepared for seeding, 
the next thing to be done is to select the best and cleanest 
seed wheat. The best variety should always be obtained even 
at a price double the usual selling price. Almost every farmer 
has some special manner of selecting seed; some by threshing 
the sheaves with a flail, others by tramping it out with horses. 
But whatever kind of wheat you use for seed, be sure it is 
entirely free of foul seeds. A good way to get seed wheat is, 
to take ripe sheaves and beat off the best of the grain in an 
open barrel or tierce, leaving the smaller grains still in the 
head for the thresher. Then take this picked seed, winnow 
and screen it well, and you have the cream of the field. * 

We may by some be deemed over-nice in our views, but we 
would recommend, wherever it is practicable, that the largest 
and plumpest berries be selected by hand-picking. We are 
satisfied that the farmer who does so once will find his own 
reward in the result. 

A habit has obtained among the European population, more 
especially among the Germans and French in Stark, Holmes, 
Wayne and Columbiana counties, to soak the seed wheat over 
night in a solution of blue vitriol, say one pound to five or 
six gallons of water into which ;is much wheat is poured as the 
water will cover. They gave us various reasons for this prac- 
tice, among which the following were the most prominent: 

I. That soaking the wheat killed the Hessian fly. 

II. That soaking the wheat killed the midge. 

III. That soaking the wheat prevented smut. 

IV. That soaking the wheat caused it to tiller more than 
double the usual amount. 

How far practice confirmed the hypothesis we have no cer- 
tain means of determining, but certain it is that these farmers 
always were rewarded with abundant crops of excellent wheat. 

In addition to steeping the wheat seed, some subjected it to 
another process. After it was removed from the steep quick- 



WHAT STEEPING bEKD ACCOMPLISHES. 459 

lime was sprinkled over the mass, and so thoroughly incor- 
porated in it that each individual seed was completely covered 
with lime. 

We by no means object to seed being steeped, well satisfied 
that it more thoroughly cleanses the seed of all parasites and 
other impurities with which it may be contaminated, but deem 
it our duty at the same time to state candidly and explicitly, 
that we do not believe that steeping accomplishes all that is 
claimed for it. 

I. That it kills the Hessian fly is obviously a mistake, be- 
cause to kill it by steeping presupposes that the larvae of this 
parasite already exist in the grain of wheat ; we have searched 
through many grains of wheat grown in the fields affected by 
the Hessian fly, and have been unable to find any orifice by 
which they could have entered, neither could we find any 
larvae in the body of the grain. 

II. The same objection is equally valid with respect to the 
midge. 

III. There is no doubt that steeping and liming, if tho- 
roughly done, will effectually prevent smut. 

IV. We must be pardoned for our inveterate scepticism with 
respect to the doctrine that steeping will augment tillering. 
If this hypothesis were correct, then steeped seed, if sown on 
a barren soil, would tiller as profusely as if sown on a rich 
one. But we have another equally strong objection to this 
hypothesis, viz. : we do not believe that any solution will add 
vigor or prolificacy to the plant, but admit that chemical and 
mechanical conditions of soil can produce such results. 

Having prepared the ground and selected the seed, the next 
thing in order is to get the seed properly placed in the soil. 
We confess our partiality to the drill, and can not present the 
arguments in favor of the drill more concisely and effectually 
than they are stated in the following prize essay copied from 
the Ohio State Agricultural Import, for 1858 : 

'•The present century will be more distinguished in the his- 
tory of agriculture than any of its predecessors, for imple- 



460 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

merits designed to economize the time and labor of the 
husbandman ; but the credit of machines for seed planting 
does not belong to it. They were known to the Italians in 
the beginning of the seventeenth century. Experiments in 
Italy, about the year 1650, with machines having a cylinder 
in a seed box, arranged over plows, on wheels, in the language 
of an ancient chronicler, " brought a crop of sixty for one." 
This success introduced the machines to Spain in 1669. In 
the beginning of the seventeenth century, according to Bacon, 
attempts were made in England to plant wheat by machinery. 
The experiments were abandoned because the machines being 
rude, the method was considered too laborious, but against 
the judgment of the farseeing philosopher who declared it ad- 
vantageous. Later in the seventeenth, and early in the 
eighteenth century, various attempts were made to gain suc- 
cesses which would secure general favor for seed-planters ; but 
not until the beginning of the nineteenth century did drilling 
become at all common in England. Machinery is now com- 
monly employed there, not only for planting wheat and other 
grains, but for turnip and other root seeds. Drills have been 
used chiefly in America for planting corn and wheat, and for 
sowing grass seed. Their service for those purposes was not 
known among farmers, generally, ten years ago. 

Since 1850, wheat planters have been more and more widely 
employed in Ohio and other wheat-growing States, and will, 
in a few years, entirely supersede the hoe and the harrow, for 
practical reasons, which maybe set forth in three propositions : 

It is better to plant wheat with a good drill than to sow it 
broad-cast and harrow it in, because, 

Time and labor are economized, 

Seed is saved, 

A larger yield is secured. 

Why Labor is Saved. 

I. Supposing the ground to be alike prepared for broadcast 
or drill seeding, the farmer can "put out" two acres with a 



WHY DRILLING IS PROFITABLE. 461 

good drill for every one he can broadcast and harrow in. Six- 
teen acres a day is not a large claim for a drill, on good 
ground, with a pair of tractable horses and an attentive 
driver. But, the saving of three or four, or six or eight days' 
labor in a year, is not the great advantage in the economy of 
time and labor gained with a drill. It is the saving of time 
at a favorable juncture for planting — the accomplishment of 
a large amount of work when the necessity is most im- 
perative. 

Again, when the farmer drills his grain, the work is finished 
as fast as his team goes across the field. Not so, when he 
scatters his seed broadcast. A sudden storm, or some other 
contingency, may arrest his labors, when only a part of the 
seed has been harrowed in, and he may be obliged to sow 
over it again to his disadvantage, not only in the labor and 
seed expended, but, perhaps, to the detriment of the expected 
crop. 

Why Seed is Saved. 

II. One and a quarter bushels of seed planted with a drill 
are equal to one and a half bushels sown broadcast, under the 
same circumstances of soil and climate, because all the grain 
put into the drill-box is deposited in the ground — none is 
blown away — none is left where the birds can pick it up, or 
the common insects can feed upon it. 

Again, independently of loss of seed by failure to find a 
lodgement for it in the soil when broadcast, seed is saved by 
the drill, because the precise quantity known to be most de- 
sirable can always be sown. 

Why a Larger Yield is Secured. 

III. Wheat drilled produces more abundantly than that 
sown broadcast, for the following reasons : 

1. The shovel of the drill removes small stones and pul- 
verizes the soil, at least enough to allow fine dirt to fall over 
the seed, which is thus better placed for vegetation than it 



462 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

can be with a harrow that partially stirs it with the soil, leav- 
ing some seeds too deep, some not deep enough, and others 
entirely uncovered. 

2. The shovel of the drill makes a furrow, at the bottom of 
which the seed is covered ; the earth thrown out on either 
side of that furrow forms a drain, in which the water carries 
all the better properties of the soil, nourishing the roots of 
the grain. When spring comes, the frosts which have 
" thrown out " and winter-killed broadcast wheat, having filled 
the drains in the drilled field, its roots are in good soil well 
fed, and at once the wheat grows vigorously. The frosts, 
therefore, which are disadvantageous to broadcast wheat, have 
a good influence upon that properly drilled. 

3. The seed deposited by the drill, at whatever depth the 
farmer may wish, according to soil, climate, or season, haviDg 
taken root with an even, firm hold, produces a vigorous blade, 
and induces healthy tillering. In time of drouth, the grain 
grows steadily, while much of that sown broadcast, in soil of 
the same character, shrivels, or produces single weak stalks, 
because the evaporation has taken the moisture out of the 
ground where its roots lie. 

4. The position of drilled wheat is favorable to the circula- 
tion of light and air, elements which are known to be inti- 
mately required for healthful growth and proper ripening, 
by every stalk. 

5. The growth of drilled wheat being uniform, from the 
fact of its regular distribution at regular depth, its ripening 
is nearly simultaneous, and it is, therefore, not subject to the 
ravages of the midge (yellow weevil), or to damage by rust, 
in the same degree that broadcast wheat is ; some stalks of 
which, as is well known to farmers, may be in blossom, while 
in others the grain is hardening, thus affording the mischiev- 
ous insect fair opportunity to make sad havoc — giving it time 
to work upon heads in different parts of the field, just when it 
can be most destructive. 

6. Ripening uniformly, because all its stalks have had equal 



SUMMARY. 4(53 

nourishment from soil, moisture, light and air, drilled wheat 
may be gathered with greater security than broadcast, in 
which there may be heads too ripe, while others are barely 
fit for harvest. 

7. Having depth of root — having grown regularly, because 
uniformly nourished and protected, drilled wheat produces 
strong stalks which bear large heads. Experience has proven 
that when wheat stalks are crowded together, they produce 
heads of different sizes, very small, and poorly filled. It is 
impossible to guard against irregular planting, with the hand 
and the harrow, and it is possible to make an even distribution 
of seed with good machines, properly adjusted ; therefore have 
experiments, made with care, demonstrated the fact that the 
yield from drilled wheat is on an average one-fifth greater 
than from that sown broadcast. A careful man who examines 
a field of wheat, will find that the stalks which bear small 
heads, have roots that lie near the surface of the ground ; 
those bearing large heads have roots lying not less than two, 
and in many soils, three inches deep. If the seeds well 
planted are those which bear large heads, to plant all the 
seeds well will, under ordinary circumstances, secure large 
heads on all the stalks. Therefore is it clear why forty-eight 
bushels of wheat per acre have been harvested from fields 
when drilled, which when sown broadcast, did not average 
forty bushels per acre. 

Summary. 

The whole question of the comparative advantages of drill 
seeding, over broadcast, may be resolved into three plain 
statements : 

1. Wheat sown broadcast is at the mercy of the winds, the 
harrow, the birds, the insects, and the clouds. 

2. No intelligent farmer will deny that careful experiments 
will decide exactly what depth for given soil, seed ought to be 
deposited; and exactly how much to the acre will grow well 
and produce best under known conditions. 



464 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

3. Then, the proper quantity of seed to the acre ascertained 
— the proper depth discovered — it is obvious that the instru- 
mentality by which the quantity desired will be uniformly 
deposited at the depth desired, should always be employed, 
when wheat is to be planted. 

Now, the question arises : Can farmers procure, at reasona- 
ble cost, machines for planting wheat, which will deposit the 
seed at regular distances, and at uniform depth? That either 
of the drills offered by the State Board of Agriculture as 
prizes, is capable of answering what this essay demands for a 
good machine, many reliable certificates can be adduced. 

It should be mentioned as an incidental advantage of drills, 
that to several of the different machines grass- sowers are so 
attached, that while the grain from one box is being planted 
in drills, grass seed is sown broadcast from another. Not only 
does wheat grow better in drilled fields, but the grass sown in 
them is better than that cultivated with broadcast wheat, 
because through the regular grain, light and air, and dews, 
and gentle rains more directly reach it. 

Another incidental advantage of drill seeding may be sug- 
gested — that of depositing special manures with seed. 

The foregoing arguments — which might be strengthened 
with minor points that will suggest themselves to thoughtful 
farmers — are not based upon speculation, but upon actual 
experiments, through a series of years, to which, if required, 
certificates of as good farmers as there are in Ohio, can be 
obtained. 

Good drills, in Ohio, cost from $75 to $100. Whether 
their advantages justify such an outlay, is answered in the 
reasons I have given why they save seed and labor, and secure 
increased crops. I can give the name and address of more 
than one prominent farmer who will certify that the increase 
of crop for drilled, over broadcast wheat, was worth enough in 
one year, from forty acres, to pay for a drill which cost $75. 

But drills are not alone economical for the planting of 
wheat. They have been proven advantageous for oats, barley, 



EFFECTS OF WARMTH AND FROST UPON PLANTS. 465 

rye, and corn, and may be used in America, as in England, 
for planting beans, peas, and the seeds of other vegetables, 
wherever their cultivation, on a large scale, is undertaken. 

I might close this essay with tabular statements contrasting, 
in support of my propositions, the labor, expense, and profit 
of broadcast and drill seeding, but I will omit them because I 
do not think the candid inquirer will demand more particu- 
larity than has been given. 

When the validity of my claim, for economy of labor and 
seed by means of a good drill ; and for an average yield one- 
fifth larger than hand and harrow seeding secures, is respect- 
ably disputed, statistics supporting it, from the best wheat 
growing districts in the Western country, will be produced. 

Effects of Warmth and Frost upon Plants. 

When the agriculturist has entrusted the seeds to the bosoi 
of the earth, he has done, with few unimportant exception 
all that he possibly can do toward securing the perpetuity c 
the plant. The growth of the plant depends upon the prop< 
amount, and at seasonable periods, of sunshine and rai 
Both warmth and moisture are of equal, as well as of prii 
importance in the germination of the seed, and the develo_ 
ment of the future plant. If the one condition is not ful- 
filled, it can not be supplied by the other. No amount of 
rain can supply a deficiency of sunshine ; and all the sun- 
shine possible can not make good the want of rain; heat 
without rain is just as fatal as rain without warmth. 

It may appear superfluous to spend either time or words in 
the investigation of a subject over which man has no absolute 
control; but as investigation has been commenced, we learn, 
the further the subject is pursued, that notwithstanding 
we can not control the operation of the elements, we may 
nevertheless so accommodate ourselves to their operation as 
to leave their effects less disastrous. 

We shall allude to several well known phenomena only to 
illustrate this declaration. There are fields often in the same 



466 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

vicinity upon which the sun sliines equally, but which are 
nevertheless warmed in unequal degrees ; the practical agri- 
culturist says of the soil in one field that it is cold, and of the 
other that it is warm ; and it is a well known fact that the 
cold soil never produces as abundantly nor as luxuriously as 
the warm soil. The cold soil is generally composed of im- 
pervious substances, which retain moisture a great length of 
time. Now by thoroughly underdraining a cold soil, the 
plant is greatly benefited, not only by not having a super- 
fluous amount of subterranean water to contend with, but also 
by the increased temperature of the soil consequent upon the 
removal of the water. The rays of the sun then produce 
actual warmth in the soil, while before it was drained, they 
served to evaporate moisture only. 

Again : a cold soil is most generally a light colored one. 
It is a well known law in nature that dark objects attract and 
retain rays of light better than light colored ones ; hence, if a 
light colored cold soil can have a dark substance, as humus, 
soot, etc., incorporated with it, it will become warmer. 

There are many practical questions depending upon the 
solution of the temperature of the soil ; one of which we will 
present, without attempting a solution of it, viz. : What tem- 
perature of soil and atmosphere are most appropriate in which 
to sow seeds? For example, is it better to plant ripe potatoes 
in a low temperature, or to plant later, when both soil and air 
Are warmer? The recent investigations in the search of the 
/ cause of the potato rot, as well as the cause of Honeydew and 
/ Mildew, demonstrate that they are caused chiefly by sudden 
changes of temperature between high and low ranges. The 
\ theory that potatoes planted very early, and suffered to lie in 
\ the soil without germinating, and subject to many changes, if 
not extremes of temperature, are more subject to disease than 
those planted later, is not without foundation in fact. It has 
frequently been observed that late planted potatoes have not 
outstripped the early planted ones in growth, but have pro- 
duced much healthier fruit. 



WARMTH OF PLANTS. 467 

Notwithstanding we may be able to explain tlie operation 
of the sun's rays upon soils and plants in some special cases, 
yet there are so many relations which warmth sustains to the 
plant that every reflecting person has asked himself the ques- 
tion, "How is this to be explained? Why is it?" We will 
endeavor to explain the effects of dew, frost and freezing upon 
plants. Dew has frequently been observed in one locality, 
while in the same neighborhood perhaps a frost has occurred ; 
in one place a plant is found to have been frozen, while in 
another the plants are fresh and healthy ; here leaves on the 
top and side only of a tree have been frozen, while on the 
other side and beneath they were not affected, etc. 

Inherent Warmth of Plants, and the Warmth they 
Receive from the Sun. 

If we admit that plants, like animals, through vitalization, 
have the power to generate warmth, we must at the same time 
be convinced that they are subject to all the fluctuations of 
temperature that the atmosphere which surrounds them, and 
the soil in which they grow are subjected to. In order to 
demonstrate this dependency experiments have been insti- 
tuted to determine the temperature of the heart of the trunk, 
limbs, and even roots of trees, by inserting a thermometer, 
and then comparing it with one registering the temperature 
of the air which surrounded it. The results exhibited a great 
disparity in temperature. 

An observation made on a maple in midsummer resulted as 
follows : 

Temperature of the atmosphere 74° F. 

" in the heart of the trunk, 12 inches in diameter. ..58° 

11 of the sap wood of trunk 62° 

" of the heart of upper portion, 6 inches in diameter 71£° 

" of a three inch iimb 72° 

" of a root at nine inches depth 59° 

" of the soil 58° 

The relation which the plant, atmosphere and soil bear to 



468 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

each other, so far as warmth is concerned, is more apparent 
during sudden changes of temperature. The observations 
above mentioned were repeated on the same tree at a time 
when, in the course of seven hours, the temperature of the 
atmosphere rose from 6° to 41° ; during the same period the 
temperature of the limb rose from .... 16J° to 41° 
" of the trunk, 6 inches in diameter 15° to 33° 

" of the trunk, 12 inches in diameter 16^-° to 25° 

« of sap-wood ' 33° to 34° 

From this it is very evident that the young and tender por- 
tions of the plant are more subject to the vicissitudes of tem- 
perature than the older and more woody portions — the older 
parts acquire and impart temperature with much less rapidity 
than the younger portions, which are affected by the slightest 
changes. This experiment, however, affords no evidence of 
innate warmth in the plant. The question whether plants can 
generate heat was first determined by the fact, well known to 
our nurserymen, that if plants are surrounded by vapor 
they " damp off." From this phenomenon we conclude that 
plants have an inherent warmth, because water can be con- 
verted into and remain in vapor only, when confined in 
a space already saturated with moisture, and under a rising 
temperature ; — if, therefore, when plants situated in a place 
saturated with vapor without a rising temperature, or a tem- 
perature to sustain it in vapor, still exhale moisture, it is very 
evident that the heat necessary to convert the water into vapor 
must be produced by the plant itself. The temperature of all 
plants is not, however, the same, but their capacity to exhale 
depends upon the amount of leaf surface. 

But as the innate warmth of the plant appears to be applied 
only to convert the water into vapor in order to exhale it, it 
therefore becomes more explicable why plants are subject to 
all the changes in temperature which the soil and atmosphere 
undergo. 

The absolute heat of plants, like that of all inanimate 
substances, is dependent upon the action of the rays of the 



WARMTH OF PLANTS. 469 

sun, the physical laws of which are well known, namely, trans- 
parent, brilliant and light-colored substances do not retain the 
heat, but substances which are rough and dark absorb and 
retain the heat of the sun. That the power of substances to 
retain heat depends upon their color is readily demonstrated. 
Professor Schnebler covered some earth with a coat of talk or 
white earth, and another portion with soot. In the course of an 
hour that under the white cover exhibited a temperature of 
93^-°, while that under the black was 104°. 

Plants having large and deep-green leaves one would natur- 
ally suppose would in consequence be warmer than the atmos- 
phere, but strict observation has determined that they are 
absolutely colder — the heat being almost exclusively devoted 
to evaporating the moisture. 

When the sun's rays no longer fall upon the plants, as in the 
evening just after sunset, then the plant gradually cools down, 
and imparts all the warmth it had acquired during the day. 
The rapidity with which plants part with their warmth is very 
dissimilar, although the plants themselves are similarly, or 
even alike situated. As a general thing, plants whose leaves 
are thin, serrated, or hairy, part more readily with warmth 
than those having thick, fleshy, and smooth leaves. The pre- 
cise amounts of depression of temperature to which certain 
plants are subject are well known — a blade of rough grass, for 
instance, loses from 12° to 15° of warmth, while a camelia 
leaf parts with no more than from 6° to 9°. 

Another phenomenon of the radiation of heat is the for- 
mation of dew. Dew is formed on objects which- are in con- 
tact with the atmosphere, and have imparted the warmth which 
they acquired during the day to it; and, as they gradually 
lose their warmth, so also do they lose their capacity to retain 
water in the form of vapor, and consequently by their want of 
warmth they condense the moisture of the atmosphere, which is 
found in the form of small globules or drops on the surface 
of these substances ; upon the same principle that drops of 
water collect on the outside of a glass vessel filled with cold 



470 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

water on a warm day. Dew does not fall every evening, and 
even when it does fall it is not observed on all objects or sub- 
stances. Dew falls only when the sky is serene and the air is 
calm ; then just before sunset, if there are substances on which 
the rays of the sun are no longer falling, they will be found 
to be moist. If the sky is clouded the radiation of heat is 
interrupted, and of course condensation can not take place. 
If we suspend a board or stout paper over a plant, the heat 
which it radiates is thrown back upon it, and thus is the plant 
kept warm — the temperature is not reduced in consequence to 
the dew point — hence there is no dew in a dense forest, neither 
is there dew in the immediate vicinity of walls, buildings, etc., 
because they radiate during the entire night in summer time. 
A very gentle breeze will prevent dew from forming, because 
every moment the atmosphere is changing, and this interrupts 
radiation. 

If we examine objects in the morning after a dew has fallen 
we discover that although substances are lying in close prox- 
imity to each other, they yet have unequal amounts of dew upon 
them ; metallic substances having the largest amount, wooden 
ones less, etc. If plants are examined, it will be found that 
the leaves of some contain much more than others of the 
same superficies. This phenomenon is in accordance with a 
law of nature, that rough, or uneven, or pointed bodies radi- 
ate their heat more rapidly than those with smooth or polished 
surfaces. The former radiating more rapidly are cooled more 
rapidly, and condense more rapidly than the latter. Grasses 
therefore have more dews, in proportion to the superficial 
area, than other plants. Hence bearded wheats have more dew 
than bald or smooth ones, and as frost is nothing more nor 
less than frozen dew, it follows, as a matter of course, that 
bearded wheats when in head suffer more from frosts than 
smooth ones. The frost of June 4, 1859, fully demonstrates 
this fact, if any proof were necessary. The Mediterranean 
everywhere suffered more from the frosts than did the white 
blue-stem. 



WHY SOME PLANTS FREEZE READILY. 471 

Again, there is a very great difference in the capacity of 
bodies to retain heat, and much more heat must consequently 
be applied to produce in such bodies the same temperature : 
water, for example, requires thirty-three times as much heat 
to raise its temperature to 200° as mercury does. The body 
possessing the greatest capacity for retaining heat imparts 
it the slowest, and therefore collects less dew than those which 
impart heat rapidly — hence limestone and quartz seldom col 
lect dew, and for this reason sandy districts have very little 
dew but great heat and drought. 

When the temperature of the atmosphere falls below 32°,, 
the dew congeals as rapidly as it falls, and it is called frost. 
It not unfrequently happens that in valleys there is a frost, 
when places having a greater elevation have dew only — or that 
grass is frozen while cabbage is bedewed only. 

It frequently happens that grass is frozen while at a place 
fifteen or twenty feet above it dew only has formed. The grass 
has been deprived of the sun's rays sooner than the higher 
object, and the cold atmosphere obeying the law of gravity, 
has sunk down in the valley, and remained calm. 

The radiation of heat from plants produces the phenome- 
non at which we have intimated above, namely, frost or freez- 
ing of plants at certain seasons of the year. Frosts from 
radiation occur most generally in spring and autumn, although 
they sometimes occur in June, and even in July and August, 
during nights when the sky is bright and clear, and other 
conditions favorable for rapid radiation. The temperature 
of the atmosphere at the surface of the earth, must then be 
one or more degrees below 32°, or freezing point. These 
summer frosts present peculiar phenomena — in deep valleys, 
on banks, and on streams frost may be found, while the up- 
lands will have dew only; two or three spots in a twenty-acre 
field may be affected by frost, while the remainder of this 
escaped uninjured. Then, again, plants which radiate fully 
or rapidly may be frozen, while those which radiate slowly 
may escape entirely. In some fields in which bearded and 



472 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

smooth wheat were sown but not thoroughly mixed, the places 
in which the bearded variety preponderated was frozen, while 
such portions as contained a greater proportion of smooth 
than bearded was only slightly frozen. 

The Grass family (and wheat is a member of this family) is 
more subject to frost than any other family of plants — this 
susceptibility to frost is so remarkable that there is scarcely a 
meadow of any considerable extent in which frost may not be 
found during every month in the year. Every nurseryman 
has learned, by sad experience, that it is more difficult to rear 
young plants in a grass plat, on account of frost, than it is on 
a plat enjoying regular plow culture. If there are two vine- 
yards adjoining each other, the one suffered to grow in grass 
while the other is kept clean, should a frost occur the grassy 
vineyard will suffer the most severely. 

It is a common practice with German gardeners to sprinkle 
water profusely over the plants which are frozen before the 
sun has an opportunity to shine on them. If the frost was 
severe the water will be congealed, while at the same time it 
thaws the plant, or takes the frost out of it. Observation 
teaches that if a rain follows a frost without the intervention 
of sunshine, the plants are uninjured; but if sunshine 
follow the frost, whatever it has touched is generally fatally 
injured. 

It is an error to suppose, as was formerly done, that when 
frozen plants are sprinkled with water, they are thereby 
more gradually thawed than by the sun's rays. It is well 
known that water expands as it is converted into ice, and 
not unfrequently increases one-tenth in bulk, and from this 
fact it has been inferred that the juices in the cells of the 
plant ruptured their envelop ; but it is found that the cells 
are not uniformly ruptured, most generally they are expanded 
only. 

In freezing air becomes separated from the water, and it is 
very seldom indeed that a piece of ice can be obtained en- 
tirely free from little cavities filled with air. Now, if tbe 



HOW TO THAW FHOZKN VEGETABLES. 473 

frozen cells of a plant are examined, they will be found to 
contain minute cavities of air : this free or separated air does 
not combine with the water when the plant thaws, but remains 
separate, and acts destructively on the chlorophyll, and 
destroys the vitality of the plant. In order, then, to prevent 
the separated from acting on the plant, if water is poured over 
it, it will absorb or drink in the water, fill the cello there- 
with, and expel the air through the ducts of the plant. The 
stimulant thus furnished the plant incites it to activity and 
prevents the action upon the chlorophyll. If apples or pota- 
toes are frozen and prepared for the table while in this condi- 
tion, they are not injured in texture or flavor. Hard frozen 
potatoes, if plunged into a pot of boiling water, are cooked 
as " mealy" as if they were not frozen; but if suffered to 
thaw and then cooked, they never become mealy, and have 
invariably lost much of their flavor. If potatoes, when fro- 
zen, are thawed in cold water, the frost is drawn out without 
any injury to any of the qualities. So also of apples. 

Acting upon the suggestion indicated by nature that a 
strong light was injurious to frozen vegetables, a friend of 
mine (Mr. Gribble, of Cleveland) having had some potatoes 
and apples frozen in his cellar in the severe winter of 1S55-6, 
placed them immediately in utter darkness, where no ray of 
light could reach them — in the spring they were found thawed 
and in excellent condition — in fact it was difficult to deter- 
mine whether they were frozen at all. Hence it is possible 
that if garden vegetables are frozen during the night, and are 
covered early in the morning, so as to exclude the light of 
the sun, the freeze they have undergone will not injure 
them. It is, to say the least, worthy of experiment. 

How the frost acts, or what physical and chemical changes 
a plant undergoes in freezing, is not so clearly described by 
writers on this subject as is desirable to a perfect comprehen- 
sion of the subject. On a previous page it was suggested that 
in all probability the action of light on plants was to fix the 
carbon, while the oxygen was permitted to escape; and at 
40 



474 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

night, when the light was withdrawn, there being nothing 
to fix the carbon, it then escaped, or, in other words, that 
the plant exhale 1 oxygen during the day-time, and carbon or 
carbonic acid at night. Should future investigations confirm 
this suggestion, may not the following be, perhaps, an explan- 
ation of the manner in which frost acts : 

The plant receives its nourishment in a fluid form, which is 
composed chiefly of carbonic acid, oxygen, hydrogen, and ni- 
trogen. When plants freeze, the cell-walls, or membranes 
are expanded from the expansion of the fluids contained 
within them, because it is a well known law, that freezing 
causes fluids to expand ; — almost every one is familiar with 
instances of bottles containing water being burst by freezing. 
Now, the cell-walls in plants, fruits, etc., are exceedingly del- 
icate, and attenuated to the highest degree, and in the normal 
state are filled with parenchyma, or fluid matter from which 
wood, starch, sugar, gum, etc., are formed. All these sub- 
stances, namely, wood, starch, sugar, gum, etc., contain carbon 
combined with oxygen and hydrogen. When freezing ensues 
the combination is probably separated ; the oxygen and hydro- 
gen (water) eliminated, and the carbonic acid retained ; then, 
when light, and necessarily heat is suffered to act on the plant 
in this condition, the carbon becomes fixed in the cells, and 
impedes the circulation of newly elaborated juices, sent up 
from the roots. The regular channels are, if not absolutely 
obliterated, at least obstructed by an abnormal mass of mat- 
ter, and the plant necessarily dies. But if light is withheld, 
there is no separation of the carbon from the other elements, 
the combination is not deranged or disturbed, and the accu- 
mulation of new juices sent up by the roots commingles with 
that the progress of which had been arrested ; a re-organiza- 
tion of the cell-contents takes place, and the elaboration of 
the juices preparatory to being converted into wood, starch, 
sugar, etc., goes on as before. 

The wheat plant is a hardy plant, and has more vitality and 
•recuperative anergy than most of cultivated plants. Wheat 



WHEN SHOULD GRAIN BE HARVESTED. 475 

sown in the fall is seldom killed by the severest winter frosts, 
but oats sown in the fall are killed by almost the first frost 
of winter. In the spring time wheat may be pastured or 
mown down with no other injury than that of being retarded 
a few days at harvest. There are very few plants which pos- 
sess such vitality. 

Many frosts have occurred in May and June, of different 
years, which destroyed beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, and other 
garden vegetables, but which did not injure the wheat. The 
early frosts in May, 1845, retarded the wheat; but they 
occurred before it had headed out. Many ascribed the short 
heads to the frost, when in reality it should have been as- 
cribed to the great drought which then prevailed. The frost 
of the 29th of May, 1845, destroyed the wheat which was in 
bloom at that time, while that which had not yet bloomed, 
and that in which the berry was partially formed, escaped. 
That which was killed in bloom sent out new tillers, and in 
many instances produced a considerable amount of wheat late 
in the season — say in the latter part of August and first of 
September. It is perhaps to be recommended, in cases where 
wheat is killed in the bloom, to leave the field undisturbed ; 
let the plant put forth new tillers, or stools, and in all proba- 
bility as profitable harvest will be obtained as any other 
which could be grown on the same tract during that season. 

When Should Grain be Harvested. 

When is the proper period to cut grain ? This is an import- 
ant question with the Western farmer at the present moment ; 
for it is one closely allied to his interests, and one which he 
should carefully inquire into. The best means of deciding 
the question is to consult the opinion of those, who, by a 
course of careful experiments, have acquired such experience 
as entitles their decisions to respect. The weight of opinion 
seems to be decidedly in favor of early harvesting — before the 
grain is fully ripe. The most judicious millers and grain 
dealers are decidedly in favor of early harvesting — and 



476 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

I 

certainly their opinion is worth something. In New York, and 
indeed, in all of the great grain -growing States, the practice 
of cutting grain before it is dead ripe, universally prevails. 
With them, the exact time when it should be cut is now no 
longer a matter of doubt ; all being perfectly convinced that 
the right period is indicated by that change which the grain 
experiences when passing from a milky state to that of com- 
plete hardness ; or, in other words, when it is in the " dough," 
and when the kernels without being "sticky," are yet not 
sufficiently hard to resist the pressure of the thumb and 
finger. 

The advantages of this early cutting are : The grain is 
heavier, plumper, sweeter and whiter — thereby making it more 
valuable for the market ; there is less loss from scattered grain, 
either from the high winds, or when the grain is cut with a 
machine, or in handling when stacking ; the straw, particular- 
ly when it is an object to feed, is much more valuable, because 
it will possess a greater proportion of succulence and saccharine 
sweetness, which render it better food for stock ; the farina of 
the grain being perfected, all that is necessary to render it fit 
for flouring is the hardening of it, and this, it is abundantly 
established, may be as well perfected after the straw is cut, as 
before. Again, grain that is allowed to stand until it is fully, 
or dead ripe, makes darker flour. 

Many experiments in cutting wheat at different periods of 
ripening, go to show that from twelve to fourteen days before 
" dead ripe," gives the plumpest, heaviest, thinnest skinned, 
and most nutritive grain. The loss in weight by standing is 
nearly 15 per cent., and the loss in equal weights by the in- 
crease of- bran, is about 4 per cent. At this period the grain 
is in the milk ; " there is," says the late Prof. Norton, " but 
little woody fiber ; nearly every thing is starch, gluten, sugar, 
etc., with a large percentage of water. If cut then the pro- 
portion of woody fiber is still small : but as the grain ripens 
the thickness of the skin rapidly increases, woody fiber being 
formed at the expense of the starch and sugar ; these must 



PROFITABLENESS OF EARLY HARVESTING. 477 

obviously diminish in a corresponding degree, the quality of 
the grain being of course injured." 

Earl}' cutting is well known to enhance to a considerable 
extent, the value of the straw as food for animals. The ex- 
periments show about the same per cent, increase in this as in 
the grain. The philosophy of this is thus explained by chem- 
istry : all plants contain the largest amount of matter soluble 
in water, at the period of flowering, and that the sugar and 
gluten of the stalk constitute its chief value as food for an- 
imals. They rapidly diminish as the seed forms, changing into 
insoluble woody fiber, and hay which should resemble grass 
in its most perfect state, is worth much less if not made until 
after that period. The value of wheat straw depends upon 
the observance of the same law, and thus it is seen that the 
time of harvesting, which best secures the value of both grain 
and straw very nearly coincides. 

A saving of grain is made by early harvesting, from the 
fact that waste from shelling is avoided. This loss is often 
large in fully ripe wheat, and it is a loss no caution can avert 
with ripe grain. The loss from rust, also, will in most cases 
be thus prevented. This disease generally makes its appear- 
ance at about that stage of growth recommended for cutting 
the grain, and whenever it does appear, its injuries can at 
once be checked by harvesting. 

Early harvesting allows more time for the work, so that the 
business of securing the crop is not crowded into a few days, 
in which it must be accomplished, or serious loss result from 
over-ripening and shelling, and if the weather is bad, from 
growing in the ear. 

The proper maturity for cutting may be judged of more 
accurately, perhaps, if described as that when the stalk imme- 
diately below the head, for two or three inches, becomes yellow 
and dry, consequently cutting off the circulation — and the 
grain, though soft and doughy, ceases to yield any milk upon 
pressure. This occurs about a fortnight before the seed be- 
comes dead ripe, as before remarked. 



478 THL WHEAT PLANT. 

In early harvesting, of course, greater attention must be 
given to the curing of the crop. It is advisable to allow it to 
lie for half a day or so in the swath before binding, and then 
small bundles should be made. It should be shocked up be- 
fore dew falls, and will need to remain in the field for a longer 
time than if cut when fully ripe. Should no rain occur (which 
can hardly be expected), the common practice of setting- 
up the sheaves in a double row, with the heads resting against 
each other, is simple and sufficient. Against heavy showers, 
however, this gives but little protection, nor is covering shocks 
formed in the same manner, with two sheaves laid on horizon- 
tally, the heads touching each other, a much better plan. The 
safest mode is to set up half a dozen sheaves in a round com- 
pact form, and cover them with two others broken in the mid- 
dle, and laid on in the form of a cross, with the ends spread 
out, which affords a reliable cap for the shelter of the grain 
beneath from the usual storms of the season. 

Of harvesting implements we shall not speak. The subject 
will no doubt be sufficiently agitated by those interested — the 
makers and users of these important inventions. 

For these reasons, and they seem to be well established by 
successful practice, it certainly stands the Western farmer in 
hand to consider the importance of harvesting his grain at the 
right time, that he may have the full benefit of his labor in 
the harvest field. He should not yield to the tyranny of 
prejudice, and persistingly tread in the same old beaten track, 
just because ''father did so," taking no heed of the improve- 
ments and increase of knowledge which are benefiting his 
co-laborers in the same noble pursuit. 



VARIETIES OP WHEAT. 479 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

DESCRIPTION AND CLASSIFICATION OF VARIETIES OF WHEAT. 

Wheat, botanically Triticum. A large and very important 
genus of grasses, of the terminally spiked order. About 
thirty species, besides a great multitude of varieties, at present 
are included in this order ; about as many more formerly be- 
longed to it, but now are grouped with the new genus agro- 
pyrum ; and several others which formerly were included in 
it, more properly belong to the genera secede, schlerochloa, 
and brachyopodium. All the present tritica are hardy exotic 
annuals — four of them varying in hight from 6 to 24 inches, 
and possessing very little interest; the remainder varying in 
hight from 2^ to 6 feet, and ranging in value from inferior 
economical plants, cultivable only in their native regions to 
the richest cereal grasses of all the temperate parts of the 
civilized world. All, or almost all the agropyra are hardy 
perennials, and either worthless or mischievous weeds ; most 
have a hight of between 6 and 18 inches; four of them, in- 
cluding the notorious couch-grass with its several varieties, are 
natives of Great Britain, and from thence have been intro- 
duced into this country, and nearly all the rest were and are 
indigenous in continental Europe. 

The distinctive characters of the genus triticum in the old 
or extensive sense of it, are terminally spiked inflorescence — 
two-valved and quite or -nearly equal glumes — alternate two- 
rowed, many flowered spikelets, transverse or so placed that 
the edges of the florets are toward the rachis — and two palae 
surrounding the seed, the external or lower one armed or 
pointed, and the internal or upper one cleft at the point. The 



480 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

rachis (spine) or shaft is jointed ; the spaces between the joints 
are called the internodii 5 the spikelets rising one above an- 
other on each side of the rachis, constitute the spike, or ear, 
or head ; the glume or lowermost shield of each spikelet cor- 
responds to the calyx of non-gramineous plants, and each of 
the florets to a corolla ; some certain florets in each species, 
in general, are fertile, while others are barren ; and the aggre- 
gate inflorescence of the several species differs very widely in 
the length and form of the rachis, the size and shape and 
packing of the spike, the comparative length of the glumes, 
and the number and fertility of the florets, and above all, in 
the various properties of the seeds. The distinctive characters 
of many of the species are sufficiently obvious and invariable 
to serve the purposes of the most stringent classification ; but 
those of some others, particularly of such as are very exten- 
sively cultivated and as run much into varieties, either shade 
off so greatly through these varieties, or are so liable to change 
under the influences of climate and soil and culture as to 
render the drawing of any precise line of demarkation be- 
tween different species in some cases exceedingly difficult, and 
in one or two quite impossible. 

Some wheats of an apparently peculiar nature have been 
introduced — as the Egyptian, the Polish, the Liberian, the 
Zealand and the Talavera — and additions are being constantly 
made to the stock from various parts of the world ; but al- 
though differing in the proportions, which they contain of 
nutritive matter, as well as in some particulars connected with 
their growth, they have all sprung from one origin — and 
being composed of similar elements are consequently applied 
to the same purpose. Botanists indeed class some of them as 
a distinct species ; thus for instance the Egyptian produces 
several ears from the same stem, which is not the case with any 
other sort. But when repeatedly sown upon poor land, its 
supernumerary ears gradually disappear and it at length loses 
all appearance of variety. [n like manner, other kinds of 
wheat grown in soils and climates more favorable Uy vegetation 



TRANSMUTATION OF SPECIES. 481 

than our own, have, when first introduced, succeeded very 
well and had apparently become acclimated, yet in a. series of 
years have degenerated, while other sorts imported from a 
more northern climate, or taken from an inferior quality of 
soil, have on the contrary improved. 

The same circumstance occurs to those species generally 
distinguished as winter and spring wheat ; for although they 
seem from their time of growth to be of a different nature, yet 
one can be, at pleasure, transformed into the other by the 
common means of culture. Thus if winter wheat be sown in 
the month of February, or the beginning of March, a portion 
of it will ripen, though the lateral shoots will be weak and the 
crop will only be moderate. If, however, the seed thus pro- 
duced be sown the next spring it will throw out stronger 
stems, will tiller with more luxuriance ; and if the operation 
be repeated in the following year, it will then be found con- 
verted into the nature of summer wheat. If, on the contrary, 
spring wheat be sown in the month of October, and the next 
winter prove severe, the crop will perish, or can only be saved 
if it be completely covered by a heavy fall of snow. Should 
the weather continue mild, the seed will then, however, pro- 
duce a tolerable crop, which will ripen earlier than autumn 
wheat ; the seed obtained from it will in the following year 
take longer to ripen than that of the former season ; it will 
also tiller better and partake so much more of the nature of 
the winter species, that, if sown in the month of May, it will 
not produce a crop. Thus, also, however early the true winter 
wheat may be sown in autumn, it will not produce stems in 
the same year ; but the real spring wheat will do so if sown 
at any time before midsummer. Similar remarks might be 
made, with more or less force, respecting other supposed 
specific characters — either such comparatively broad ones as 
those which distinguish the Egyptian wheats from the com- 
mon cultivated wheats, or such comparatively narrow ones as 
those which distinguish the winter wheats from the spring 
wheats. Yet the instabilities -and gradations in specific char- 
11 



482 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

acter, even though they were both greater and more numerous 
than they are. effect mainly the niceties of classification and 
address themselves principally to systematic botanists ; and 
they neither prevent mutational characters from being as true 
indexes of intrinsic constitution and adaptations as fixed 
ones, nor ought to deter agriculturists from appreciating class- 
ifications which, whether serviceable or worthless to the pur- 
poses of exact botanical science, may in some way or other be 
decidedly useful to the purposes of farming economy. 

The deterioration of varieties, from indifferent cultures, 
non-adaptation to soil, liability to diseases, etc., has caused 
the introduction of almost innumerable varieties. The fol- 
lowing communications are inserted here as forming a portion 
of the history of wheat culture in Ohio : 

Zaxesville, June 8, 1859. 
John H. Klippart, Esq.: 

Sir : — In Muskingum county, on new land, wheats of the various kinds 
have always produced good crops; now, as in New York and elsewhere, 
the yield is diminished largely on all long cultivated land. The desid- 
eratum now is to find out what manures and course of cultivation will 
supply the place of virgin soil. To men of science and practical experience 
must we look for light on this subject. The State should go to the expense 
of experimenting to find the remedy, or like Genessee country, we shall 
cease to produce wheat in quantity or certain crop. In Maryland, when 
I was a boy, my father raised very large crops of wheat, forty to fifty 
bushels per acre, on rather thin flint-stone land. Wheat every third year 
was sown after clover sod, and plastered lime was not used at that day; 
the farm lay some sixteen mile from tide-water of the Chesapeake. In 
Ohio, commencing 1820 and up to 1845, my lowest average crop of wheat 
was twenty-five bushels, and from twenty-five to fifty bushels, owing to 
freshness of the land and kinds of wheat. For five years after I first 
introduced the white wheat from Western New York, my crop averaged 
thirty-five bushels to the acre. Subsequently the White Blue- 
Stem did equally well. I found that seed introduced from a distance 
proved better than it would after four or five years. I would advise you 
to suggest a change of seed from a distance, and rely much on clover and 
lime as stimulants, and top-dressing of well rotted manure and ashes 
to hasten the ripening and increase the yield, so as to give a fifth or 



FAVOIUTE VARIETIES. 483 

tenth to the weevil and not miss it — still bare a good crop left. T have 
not farmed for ten years, and can not experiment — wish I could. 

The best varieties of wheat are red. The old Red Chaff Beardy stands 
at the head decidedly, it more uniformly yields a fair crop; the berry 
not equaled by any other red wheat; the flower much finer. This 
wheat, of good quality, is not excelled by any other whatever, except 
where fancy pastry flour is wanted. For sweet, tough bread, absorbing 
the greatest quantity of water, it is ahead of white wheat; and take it 
all in all, the Red Chaff Beardy is the best wheat for all purposes we 
have in the United States. The best white wheat that we get now is 
from Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri, and sells here from ten to 
thirty cents per bushel higher than average Ohio wheat. From these a 
barrel of flour can be made (is made) from four bushels, five pounds, to 
four bushels, ten pounds, while the yield from Ohio wheat is four bushels, 
twenty-five pounds, to four bushels, thirty-five pounds. 

I have had forty-three and a half bushels Red Chaff Beardy to the acre 
in early day, say about 1822. 

As you are soliciting information, I concluded to drop you a line giv- 
ing my views. Yours truly, 

ISAAC DILLON. 



Steuben, June 6th, 1859. 
J. H. Klippart : 

Dear Sir:— From 1820 to 1830 the " Red Chaff Bearded" was gener- 
ally cultivated ; it was abandoned for the " Genessee Flint." The Flint 
was cultivated until its further cultivation was prevented by the ravages 
of the Midge; it was late in ripening, but a hardy variety, and excellent 
for flouring. The " White Blue Stem" was introduced perhaps about 
1848, and was a very popular variety, but was abandoned for the same 
reason as the last-mentioned. The "SauVs Wheat" another popular 
variety with farmers and millers, was abandoned for the same reason 
as the two last-mentioned. The "Valley Wheal"' was introduced about 
1840, but was not a favorite, as it was a dark wheat, and poor for flour- 
ing, and condemned by the millers. The " Mediterranean" was intro- 
duced about 1840, but pretty generally condemned ; the kernel being very 
dark, but little better than rye; the straw weak and lodged very bad, 
and the yield light. A few farmers persevered in its cultivation, and it 
rapidly improved in roundness and plumpness of kernel, stiffness of 
straw, hardiness, and early ripening, and therefore escaping the ravages 
of the midge. It is now more cultivated than all the varieties, and is 
generally in favor with millers; being about five cents per bushel lower 
than the white varieties. The Mediterranean being the only variety that 



484 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

has exhibited a marked improvement in cultivation, all other varieties 
having retrograded. The "Whig or Dayton Wheal" was introduced a 
few years ago, on account of its early maturity, and thus escaping the 
midge. It has not been received with that general favor that the Medi- 
terranean has received. The kernel is small, shells bad, unless cut very 
green, and does not mature as early as the Mediterranean. The last- 
named, and the " Whig," are the only two varieties now grown to any 
extent in this vicinity; and the Mediterranean is fast taking precedence 
of all others. 

I am not aware that I can give you much information on the different 
varieties of Corn. We raise the' common Yellow Dent, but smaller varie- 
ties than are raised in Central or Southern Ohio. We have tried the dif- 
ferent varieties of New York corn, but they are not received with gen- 
eral favor. The "King Philip" or "Brown" corn has been tried, but 
will not be a favorite in this climate. 

Yours, respectfully, 

C. B. SIMMONS. 



From J. Coolidge, Painsville. 

The Mediterranean Wheat is considered second-best for flour, and is 
now about the only winter wheat we grow; the old-fashioned red and 
white chaff bald winter wheat, and the red chaff bearded winter wheat, 
were long since driven from our fields by the introduction of the several 
kinds of white flint wheat, to-wit : the Blue Stem, the Saul's Wheat, both 
bald wheat, and the Hutchinson Wheat, a bearded wheat, which were 
all of a superior quality for flour ; but they were more liable to the weevil 
and rust and a decline in quality and quantity, and are but little grown. 
The Italian Spring Wheat is the best we grow; it is a red chaff bearded 
red wheat; yields from eight to ten bushels per acre; quality good for 
spring wheat. The Canada Club, a red bearded wheat, the Black Sea 
Wheat, and the Rio Grande, all red bearded spring wheat, are not reli- 
able, and are but little grown ; in fact, we grow but little spring wheat in 
this county. Yours, respectfully, 

J. COOLIDGE. 



Since the wheat midge commenced its depredations in 1854, all the 
I;i te varieties of wheat have been abandoned, and farmers generally have 
Gettled upon two kinds, viz. : the White Blue Stem and the Mediterranean. 
Iliose who have good wheat lands, very generally prefer the White Blue 
Si em to the Mediterranean, as being more productive and of rather a 
finer quality of wheat; commanding a higher price in market. But th? 
Mediterranean is regarded as a more certain crop on an inferior wheat 



FAVORITE VARIETIES. 485 

eoil; and a greater breadth of land is sown with it than with Blue Stem. 
The White Chaff Bearded (a late variety), before the appearance of the 
midge, had been cultivated successfully above twenty years by some of 
the best farmers; but since then, has been entirely abandoned. It was 
subject to rust on poor wheat land. The Old Red Chaff Bearded ripened 
early, was very free from rust, would mature on poor soil ; and, before 
the Hessian fly made its depredations, was very generally cultivated; 
but the fly was very destructive to it, and it was abandoned. It was 
believed by many good practical farmers to be more subject to cheat than 
any other variety. The common Blue Stem was cultivated for some 
3'ears, on account of its having a stiff straw, and not liable to lodge; but 
it was believed to be very subject to smut, and is also abandoned. Sev- 
eral other kinds have been cultivated in the county within the last 
twenty-five years with good success; but as early maturity to escape the 
midge was the great desideratum among farmers, since its appearance 
they have pretcy much been laid aside as not maturing sufficiently early. 
The frost on the night of the 4th June last, almost entirely destroyed the 
wheat crop in the county; so that, in endeavoring to keep oft Scylla, we 
have struck against Charybdis. The White Blue Stem is white wheat, 
nearly smooth; the Mediterranean is red wheat and bearded head. Both 
are winter varieties. Little spring wheat is sown. On soil of equal 
quality, the Mediterranean ripens five or six days before the White Blue 
Stem. From the diary of one of our best farmers, in 1855, he com- 
menced cutting wheat on July 16th; in 1856, on July 12th; in 1857, on 
July 23d; in 1858, on July 9th; in 1859, effectually killed. 

The White Blue Stem is rather more subject to rust, and depredation 
of the wheat midge, than the Mediterranean. The Hessian fly has done 
but little injury for several years. 

The Mediterranean has improved by culture: the berry is more plump 
and not quite so dark colored. The White Blue Stem holds its own, 
which is not easily surpassed on well-cultivated, good wheat lands. The 
Mediterranean has been cultivated in the south part of the county about 
twelve years, and perhaps some other parts longer; the White Blue Stem, 
about eight years. 

The Mediterranean does not often exceed twenty bushels per acre. 
As high as forty bushels per acre have been raised of White Blue Stem ; 
but thirty is regarded a good yield. 

The two kinds above named are still cultivated, and likely to be culti- 
vated so long as the wheat midge continues its ravages. But as the wheat 
is so generally killed over a great part of the State, farmers are not without 
some hopes that the midge will be much less destructive for years to come. 
Mahoning Coxinty. GEO. POW. 



486 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

From D. Gregory, Delaware Co., 0. 
The kinds of wheat formerly raised had local names, and the same 
variety in different sections was not unfrequently known by different 
names. There were, however, two or three kinds of winter wheat that 
seemed to take the preference to most others ; for instance, the bearded 
red wheat was grown in this settlement from its earliest commencement 
to about ten years ago, and it was the leading variety in the early stage 
of our settlement. A blue chaffed bald wheat was a favorite with some 
producers, on account of its stiff straw, which would not fall down on 
new land; but it was late in ripening, and consequently liable to rust.. 
There were some varieties of bald white wheat that made excellent flour, 
but were abandoned, from their great liability to smut. Perhaps the 
most popular bald wheat we ever had was the Blue Stem, both white and 
red (until the Mediterranean supplanted it for its propensity to ripen 
earlier than any other variety, and thereby escape the weevil). The 
Mediterranean is the only kind of winter wheat that is safe to sow at 
present, and is considerably improved in quality, and appears to be im- 
proving as it becomes more thoroughly acclimated. It is not a very pro- 
ductive wheat, and producers differ as to its falling-off in productiveness. 
The best crop I ever raised yielded twenty bushels per acre, and that was 
ten years ago ; and I believe that my crop would have yielded fully up 
to that rate this year, if it had not been destroyed by frost of the 5th inst„ 
The truth is, that so little pains is taken to prepare ground properly for 
wheat since it became our leading crop, that we ought to expect light 
yields. 

The monographic writers on wheat, e. g., Metzger. Euro- 
ptiische Cerealen, Konig, Getreide & Futter Pflanzen von 
Deutschland, J. W. Kratjse, . Gctreidearter, generally arrange 
the classification so as to comprise seven species of wheat. Of 
these seven species three only have found their way into gen- 
eral culture in the United States. 

The Polish wheat described by these monographers, is 
rather a rye than a wheat. Spelts have, in rare instances, 
been cultivated rather as an article of curiosity than for com- 
merce or domestic consumption. I have been unable to learn 
that any of the varieties of the Emmers ( T. amyleum) have 
ever grown in the United States. St. Peter's corn (T. mono- 
coccurn) is seldom grown in Europe as an article for human 
food. 



COLOR NO BASIS OF CLASSIFICATION. 487 

I have given a list of the varieties of wheat grown in the 
State of New York. This list was compiled from Prof. Em- 
mons' Agricultural Survey, and is introduced into this work 
on account of our proximity and commercial relations to that 
State — there being no doubt varieties cultivated there which 
could, with great advantage, be introduced into Ohio. 

Finally, the varieties of wheat grown in Ohio were classi- 
fied, or rather grouped in accordance with their most obvious 
distinctions, namely: color and form, i. e. } the red wheats 
form the first group, the white ones the second, and the 
spring wheats the third. The group of red and white wheats 
are divided into bearded and smooth varieties. 

This system of grouping, if not in accordance with system- 
atic botany, is, to say the least, the most obvious and compre- 
hensive, and therefore the most practical. 

Color, however, is perhaps too unstable to serve as a basis 
of classification, because many wheats are even now changing 
from red to white, and in all probability the present " amber '' 
colored wheats are those which in the course of the next quar- 
ter or half a century will become entirely white. There is 
little doubt, however, that the white wheats are legitimate 
descendants of the red ones; the red blue-stem being the pro- 
genitor of the white blue-stem ; the bearded red Mediterra- 
nean being the parent of the bearded white Mediterranean 
variety, and so of others. If color is disregarded in group- 
ing there will then be that of form only remaining ; all 
wheats must then be found in one of two groups — bearded 
or beardless. 

The following is an outline of the classification adopted by 
the continental writers of Europe on this subject. 

To render the classification of wheat well understood, it 
should be so clear and simple, that any farmer would 1}£ ena- 
bled to state the precise variety he wishes to raise, by apply • 
ing to the seed merchant, a branch of business which should 
belong to the corn trade. 



48S THE WHEAT TLA NT 

True Wheats (Fnnnoitd). 
Seeds not attached to the chaff. Rachis not brittle. 

1. Common Wheat (T. vulgare). 

Spike four-cornered, compressed, both awned and without 
awns. Spikelets four-flowered, the two and three lower ones 
fruitiferous, three-grained, very extended, longer than broad. 
Palese ventricose, truncate at its extremity, with an acuminate 
tooth. External valve awned, or acuminate, with a long, 
awn-like tooth. Internal valve thin-skinned, inacuminate. 
Seeds oblong, ventricose, truncate, mealy, rarely glassy. 

Under this head (T. vulgare) are classed and grouped : 

a. Common white bearded wheat. 

b. " " and velvet bearded wheat. 

c. " red bearded wheat. 

d. u " velvet bearded wheat. 

e. " brown " " 
/. " blue " " 
(j. " black " " 
h. White club with white seeds, 

i. « " " yellow " 

k. " velvet club. 

I. Yellow club wheat. 

m. Red " " 

n. " velvet club wheat. 

o. Rough beard with white seeds. 

p t U U u yellow " 

q. '• velvet bearded. 

r. Hard and red club wheat. 

2. Turgid, Cone, or English Wheat (Tritlcum tergidnm). 

Spike regularly 4-cornered, simple, end branched, awned. 
Spikelets white, 1 -flowered, from 2 to 3 -seeded, 2-awncd, 
almost as long as broad. Glume ventricose, short, ending in 
a truncated tooth. Keel compressed, not very elevated. A tens 
in four regular rows, almost parallel to the spike. Se&di ven- 
tricose, mostly farinaceous, more rarely glassy. 



EUROPEAN CLASSIFICATION. 489 

a. White English (spring) wheat. 
6. " Wonder " " 

c. Black bearded white Wonder (spring) wheat. 

d. White velvet English wheat. 

e. Red English (spring) wheat. 

/. " Wonder wheat (spring). • 

g. u velvet English (winter) wheat. 
/*. « « Wonder " " 

». Blue English (winter) wheat. 
k. " Wonder " " 

3. True Bearded Wheat (Tnticum durum). 

Spike diffuse, but often hard, compact, generally roundish, 
apex somewhat compressed, erect, abundantly awned. Spikelets 
from three to four seeded, 1 1-2 as long as broad, mostly 
expanded. Glume long, much bent, ending in a broad and 
re-curved tooth, the sides compressed, its bark elevated and 
mueronate. Awns from two to three times as long as the 
spike, very quarrose, stiff and rough. Seeds long, three-corn- 
ered, rugged, mostly bright and glassy. 

The varieties have been classed as : ' diffuse " and "compact" 
spikes, in the " Europaischen Cerealen," but it is now evident 
Ihat these characteristics are annually changing, and most of 
them are assuming the compressed form ; we have therefore 
abandoned the distinction of diffuse and compact spikes. 

a. White bearded (spring) wheat. 

b. White wheat with black beards (spring). 

c. '• velvety beard wheat (spring) . 

d. " il black bearded wheat (spring). 

e. Bed beard wheat. 

/. " velvety bearded wheat. - 

g. Blue beard wheat. 

h. Thin rared bearded wheat. 

4. Polish Wheat {Triticum Polonicimi). 
Spike soft, square awned, white. Wallachian, Astrachan, 
Egyptian corn, Gounner, Symaker, Siberian, Cairo, Double 
Wheat, Germany. Ble d'Egypte, Ble de Surinam, Ble de 



\ 

490 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Magador, Ble de Pologne a epi divarique, France. Poland 
Wheat, England. Fromento di Polonia, Italy. Trigo di 
Polonia, Spain. 

Halm from 4 to 4J feet in length. Blades ^ to § inch, 
broad, 6 to 8 inches in length. Racliis long, in joints, haired 
on the border. Spikelets from 14 to 18, from 2 to 3 seeded, 2 
awned, 1 to 1 J inch, in length. Glume 1 to 1J inches in length, 
^ inch broad, compressed, with from 5 to G elevated stripes, 2 
toothed, white, smooth, keel with very fine hair. External 
valve as long as paleae, awned. Internal valve half as long as 
external, mostly unequal, slightly embracing the seeds. Aiuns 
unequal, mostly of half the length of the spike. Seeds \ 
inch long and longer, of equal breadth, furrowed flatly, little 
compressed or tapered, white, almost transparent, and glassy. 

It occurs sometimes upon fields in Germany as an experi- 
ment. 

Poland Wheat requires a warm climate, protected situation, 
loose and rich soil, and very early sowing in spring. 

a. Branched Polish wheat. 

b. Velvety " " 

c. Half awned " " 

d. Club like " " 

5. Speltz (Triticum Spelta), Linn. 

The stalk 4 feet and upward, without any pith ; when ripe, 
the same color of that of true wheat. Leaves are a foot and 
upward in length ; the spikes vary from 3 to 9 inches in 
length, and very loose, and when ripe are bluish, brownish, 
or blackish, but seldom a bright yellow. Spikelets or breasts 
are 9 to 12 on each side, and are placed at considerable dis- 
tance from each other,- each breast has three beards — the lower 
breasts have 3 grains, the upper ones two only. The rachis 
long and very brittle. The seeds are long, somewhat triangu- 
lar, deeply furrowed, reddish, glassy, opalescent, and woolly 
at the upper extremity. The chaff adheres to the grain like 
barley. 



EUROPEAN CLASSIFICATION. 491 

a. Bluish awned spelt wheat. 

b. Red « M « 

c. White " « " 

d. " glabre " 4 

e. Red " " " 

6. Emmer, or Amel-corn (21 amyleum) Seringe. 

Stalk or Halm 5 feet long, 5 jointed, tubular, the upper 
joint often 2 feet long; leaves 15 inches long, nearly an 
inch wide, bluish green with a red edge. Spike or head 4 
inches long, 2 rowed twelve to fourteen spikelets on each side, 
rather compactly arranged, each having 2 seeds. The rachis 
is small, brownish, hirsute at the joints and very brittle. 
The seeds are broadly furrowed, pointed at both ends, the 
upper end woolly ; color grayish red, very glassy. The color 
of the spike when ripe, is bluish black. (This species is 
grown extensively in the Alpine valleys for bread, food for 
cattle, and starch; is very hardy, vigorous and produc- 
tive.) 

a. Black velvet amel-corn. 

b. Red " « 

c. White " " 

d. Red compact " " 

e. White " " " 
/. Red velvet " « 
g. " many-eared " " 

h. White short awned amel-corn. 
i. " smooth many eared u u 
k. " velvet " " " " 

st. peter's corn (T. Monococcum L.). 

Stalk 3 feet high, stiff, 5 jointed, sometimes pithy just 
below the ear. Leaves 8 inch, long, narrow, and light green. 
Heads about 3 inches long, bearded, very much compressed 
laterally. There are 15 to 20 breasts or spikelets on each 
side, which are very compactly arranged. Each spikelet is 3 
flowered, but 2 are sterile, so that each breast produced one 
grain only — hence the name of "one grained wheat" The 



492 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

rachis is very short jointed, very smooth, white, and glisten- 
ing, but is so brittle that it is almost impossible to remove all 
the spikelets without destroying it. The seeds are flattish, 
being compressed on the grooved side ; the groove is very 
faint — both ends are pointed ; the point woolly ; whitish 
color, and glassy or flinty in appearance. The seeds remain 
in the chaff when thrashed the same as barley. The flour is 
dark, but makes a sweetish sad bread. But it is chiefly 
grown for malting purposes. There is one variety only. 

Wheats Grown in New York. — Compiled prom Prop. 
Emmons' Agricultural Survey. 

A. Winter Wheat. 

Improved White Flint Wheat. — This variety resembles very 
closely the White Flint. It is considered by Mr. Harmon as' 
new, having been produced by himself, by a selection of the 
best seed, and liming and sowing it upon a limestone soil. 
It is larger than the White Flint; and yet the cuticle of the 
kernel is equally thin, delicate, and white. It weighs, accord- 
ing to the statement of Mr. Harmon, whim prepared for seed, 
64 lbs. to the bushel. The specimen in the Agricultural So- 
ciety's collection has a specific gravity of 1.310,* and was fur- 
nished by the improver of the White Flint, and hence may be 
regarded as authentic. The specific gravity, however, is rather 
less than I should have expected from the weight per bushel. 
Two bushels and eighteen pounds of this wheat produced 
106.8 lbs. flour and 31 lbs. of bran ; loss 1-2 lb., equaling in 
the whole 138 lbs. 

White Provence Wheat. — This is a French variety, and is 

* The true weight of wheat is determined by its specific gravity. The 
weight of a bushel of wheat will vary with the size of the kernel, and 
from other circumstances ; while its relative weight, or that found by 
comparing it with an equal bulk of water, at a given temperature, de- 
pends upon its composition. The heavy varieties, or those with a high 
specific gravity, contain more gluten than the light: the latter contain 
the most starch. 



WINTER WHEAT. 493 

regarded as one of the finest kinds of wheat. It is without 
beards, and has a large white kernel with a thin skin. It 
grows rapidly, has larger blades, and sends out a greater num- 
ber of straws from a root than most varieties. The straw, 
however, is weak, and does not support itself well. Specific 
gravity, 1.297. From its low specific gravity, I infer that it 
weighs less to the bushel than the White and Improved 
Flints. 

Wheatland Red, Wheat. — This is a variety which has been 
brought oat by the skill of Mr. Harmon, from the Virginia 
White May kind. Its chaff is red ; head bald and of a medium 
length. It is said to weigh 66 lbs. to the bushel. Its specific 
gravity is 1.321. The objection to this kind is its red berry: 
its recommendation is that it does not rust. 

Tuscan Bald Wheat. — This kind, which was introduced from 
Tuscany in 1837, has been laid aside in consequence of its lia- 
bility to be injured or destroyed by frost. Its flour is fine and 
white, and its heads well filled. 

Skinner Wheat. — With awns ; chaff white ; straw short and 
stiff; weight 64 lbs. to the bushel. It is not in so much es- 
teem as to displace other kinds. 

Golden-drop Wheat. — Awnless, with a red chaff and rather 
thick cuticle. It is inferior to other well-known kinds in 
Western New York. 

White Blue-straw Wheat (Blue Stem of Ohio). — This kind 
has been received from Maryland. It is a beautiful kind, and 
yields a white and fine flour. Specific gravity, 1.344; with 
the cuticle removed, 1.379. It is worthy of observation that 
the specific gravity is increased by the removal of the cuticle. 

Aguira Wheat. — This kind was brought, two or three years 
since, from Spain, by F. Townsend, Esq., of Albany. It is a 
very beautiful kind, the kernel being large and white. Specific 
gravity, 1.394. Its weight approximates more closely to the 
celebrated English kinds than any of the preceding. 

Verplanck Wheat. — In richness of appearance, this wheat 
excels most others. .Its kernel is very large and white ; the 



494 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

head long, large, and well filled. The straw is large, and tall 
in proportion, being at least four and a half feet. The grain, 
however, is light, as will be seen from its low specific gravity, 
which only attains 1.261. 

B. Spring Wheat. 

1. Italian Spring Wheat. — This kind, which at first was 
esteemed, has so far deteriorated as to be neglected. 

2. Tea Wheat, Siberian Wheat. — As a spring wheat, it is 
regarded as a very good variety ; giving a white berry and fine 
white flour. It is not subject to rust. 

3. Black Sea Wheat. — The advantages arising from the 
culture of this wheat are, that it escapes the fly, ripens early, 
and rarely mildews. Its disadvantage is, that it yields a dark 
flour of an inferior quality. Its specific gravity is 1.341. In 
Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine, it is often sown, as it is 
less liable to a failure than the finer varieties. 

5. Black-bearded Wheat. — Awns long and stiff; heads 
heavy; straw large, and berry red and large; hardy. 

6. Red-bearded Wheat. — Awn red, and standing out from 
the head ; kernel white ; chaffed. Fields a good flour. A 
bushel weighs from 60 to 62 pounds. It succeeds best on 
stiff clay loams. It has yielded 44 bushels to the acre. Its 
heard is objectionable. 

7. Scotch Wheat. — Its origin is unknown. Berry large, 
and resembles the Indiana ; straw large. 

9. Talavera Wheat. — Awnless : chaff white; straw long, 
white, and stiff; heads large, long, and well filled. Specific 
gravity, 1.306. It is not sufficiently hardy to stand severe 
winters. It is frequently injured by the fly. 



Additional Varieties of Wheat which have been 
Somewhat Cultivated in this State. 

1. Velvet-chaff Bald. — Chaff greenish brown and dotted, 
without beard or awns. 



VARIOUS OHIO WHEATS. 495 

2. Wheatland Yellow. — Chaff pale yellow, with .short 
awns; heads large and berry large. 

4. Humes White. — Head rather long and slender; chaff 
yellow. 

5. Bearded Baltic. — Head thick and heavy ; chaff yellow- 
ish brown, bearded; beards moderately long. 

6. Skinner's Club. — Kernels clustered in whorls; chaff 
greenish yellow, bearded. 

7. Old Bearded Tuscan!/. — Kernels clustered, and with 
long beards, greenish yellow ; heads rather long. 

9. Baltic Down?/. — Chaff brown, quite downy ; heads long, 
beardless. 

10. Old Black Bald. — Kernels irregularly clustered ; chaff 
brown, bearded. 

11. Poland White Bald. — Berry irregularly clustered ; chaff 
greenish yellow, awned, or with shortish beards. 

12. New Velvet-chaff'. — Kernels very thickly clustered, 
bearded. 

13. Black Velvet-chaff. — Kernels closely set and thick ; 
chaff very dark. 

14. Bald Baltic. — Kernels thickly set in regular rows ; 
chaff light brown ; heads thick, heavy. 

16. Early Velvet-beard. — Kernels clustered in whorls ; 
heads long and yellow. 

17. Italian Spring Wheat. — Kernels clustered, irregularly 
arranged upon the spike ; chaff greenish yellow, thickly 
bearded. 

18. Bearded Valparaiso. — Kernels in rows regularly ar- 
ranged ; heads short and thick, bearded. 

19. Washington Wheat. — Heads very large and long ; chaff 
brown ; beards long ; berry rather dark, but numerous, 
amounting to 70 or 80. 

20. Verplanck Wheat. — : Heads quite large and beautiful ; 
berry of the largest size. 

21. Club Wheat, Pennsylvania Wheat. — Heads short; 
kernels in regular rows, bearded. 



406 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

22. Spring Rcd-chajf. — Kernels clustered ; heads long ; 
chaff reddish brown, bearded. 

23. Spring Wintington Wheat. — Kernels thickly set, but 
irregular and large ; chaff yellow, bearded. 

Before introducing the catalogue of wheats grown in Ohio, 
it was deemed not improper to introduce a catalogue and 
description of the varieties grown in England, for the reason 
that many practical hints may be obtained from it, which 
the intelligent agriculturist can turn to advantage in this coun- 
try. This catalogue and description was compiled from Morton's 
Encyclopedia of Agriculture. 

Varieties of Wheat. 

The varieties of wheat are much more numerous than of 
any other description of grain ; the result, no doubt, of the 
greater range of climates in which it has been cultivated. 
From a consideration of the ordinary modes in which nature 
operates, both in the animal and vegetable kingdoms, the 
strong probability is, that all varieties of wheat have sprung 
from one parent stock, and that the differences now observable 
are the effects produced by climate, soil, and cultivation ; for 
the differences which exist among varieties of the human race 
itself, are even greater than those which prevail among well- 
defined classes of wheat. 

Thus, all varieties of wheat may be ranged under one 
generic head — Triticum. As this article is intended to be 
sc ely of a practical nature, we shall confine our remarks to 
those varieties of wheat which Mr. Lawson properly includes 
under the specific term Triticum sativum, or cultivated wheat. 
In this gentleman's arrangement of varieties of cultivated 
wheat, as given in his list of agricultural plants, they stand 
alphabetically thus : — 

Whitish Beardless Varieties. 

Brodies. I Chiddam or Cheltham. 

Cape. Chinese. 

Chevalier. ! Clustes, tall 



lawson's classification. 



497 



Clustes, dwarf 

Dantzic Le Couteur's Jersey 

" common white. 
Duke William. 
Eclipse. 
Essex. 
Fenton. 
Flanders. 
Hopetown. 
Hungarian. 
Hunter's. 
Indian. 

Le Couteur's compact. 
" " small round. 

Morton's red strawed, white. 

" " chaffed (new). 
Mungoswell's. 
Naples. 

Reddish Beardless Varieties. 
Blood red. 
Bisshall compact. 
Caucasian red. 
Clover's red. 
Common or old. 
Creeping. 
Dantzic. 
Golden drop. 

" or red Essex. 
Flander's, or short eared. 
Hickling's prolific. 
Lammas or English. 
Marianopoli. 
Middlesex (new). 
Pomeranian. 
Piper's thickset. 
Sack yellow. 
Spalding's prolific new. 
Velvet or woolly eared of Crete. 

u " " common (old). 
Waterloo. 

42 



Odessa. 
Oxford prize. 
Painted stalked. 
Pearl, common white. 
Rattling Jack (new) . 
Salmon. 
Saumus. 
Talavera (old). 
Uxbridge. 

Velvet or woolly eared common. 
« " " Dantzic. 

Vilmorius. 
Whittington's. 
Whitworth prolific. 

To these may be added Archer's 
Prolific White Irish, and others of 
less importance. 

Whitish Bearded Varieties. 

Barbary thick-chaffed. 

Cape spring. 

Caucasian. 

Col. Le Couteur's spring. 

Common spring of France. 

Light yellow spring. 

Naples Winter. 

Sicilian small hard spring. 

Tuscany spring. 

Tumoisic black-jointed. 

Woolly eared. 

Reddish Bearded Varieties. 

Caucasian. 
Chinese spring. 
Fern or April spring. 
Hedgehog winter. 
Macaron's small hard. 
Mayoke red. 
Narbonne. 
Tuscany. 



498 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



Victoria spring. 
Woolly eared winter. 

Tinged Varieties 
Anti-fly or white cone. 



Crawley red or corn rivet. 

Louisiana. 

Lozcre smooth white. 

Peturaelle black. 

Turkey large red. 



As a full descriptive catalogue of all the varieties of wheat 
would extend far beyond the scope of this work, and is, be- 
sides, more curious than instructive, we confine our descriptive 
remarks to a few of the more esteemed varieties generally cul- 
tivated in the united kingdom at the present day : 

Whitish Beardless Varieties. — Brodie's white wheat, origin- 
ally propagated from a single ear picked by the late Mr. 
Brodie, Ormiston, in 1821. From thirty-two grains originally 
sown in 1821, the produce had multiplied to 156 bushels in 
1826. When its cultivation had extended, it was generally 
found to produce tall straw, and a fine sample, and to be early. 
It is supposed by Mr. Lawson, that this variety, and that 
called Oxford Prize wheat, are so similar as to warrant their 
being considered the same, and he adds that this is the more 
likely, from its having been ascertained that Mr. Brodie was 
in the habit of sending seed wheat to Oxfordshire. 

Ghiddam Wheat is an old and highly esteemed English 
variety of white wheat, and is very generally cultivated in the 
finest wheat districts of that country. It is a free grower, 
tall-strawed, fine square ear, singularly free from awns, grain 
round, fair but starchy, and flour a little soft. It is remark- 
ably well adapted for soft, easy soils in good condition, as it 
ripens early, is not liable to lodge or to become mildewed. 
Weight per bushel seldom under 61 lbs., even in wet years, 
and as high as 66 lbs., and 67 lbs. in dry summers. When 
cultivated in Scotland, the seed requires to be changed every 
two years from the south of England, otherwise deterioration 
rapidly ensues. 

Chester Dwarf White Wheat. — A remarkably short and 
firm-strawed variety, thick, dense ears, strong, bold sample, 
yields well, but only suitable for low-lying, rich, black, or 



FAVORITE BRITISH VARIETIES. 499 

loamy soils. The tall " Fall Cluster " resembles the dwarf 
variety in the form of the ear. It has tall straws, and rather 
apt to lodge on rich soils. 

Dantzlc ^Yllite. Col. Le Couteur s Jersey. — Originally ob- 
tained by Col. Le Couteur, from an ear of wheat imported from 
Dantzic. Tall, slender straw ; ears moderately dense, droop- 
ing to one side when ripe ; chaff thin, smooth and white ; 
grains, oblong, and of a transparent light color ; young plants 
hardy, and bloom early. 

Experiments made by Col. Le Couteur with this variety, in 
1836, gave 52 bushels per acre, of 63 lbs. per bushel, and 18 
lbs. of flour yielded 24 lbs. of bread of superior quality. 

Fenton Wheat. — In the summer of 1835, the late Mr. Hope, 
of Fenton Barns, East Lothian, noticed three ears of wheat 
growing from one root, in the center of a quarry on his farm. 
This quarry is composed of columnas basalt, and at the time 
the three ears were discovered, there was a large quantity of 
debris in the center, from which these had sprung. 

The present Mr. George Hope was with his father when the 
plant of wheat was first noticed, and he remarked that it 
could not well have long straw growing in such a place, and 
very likely was only Hunter's wheat accidentally dropped 
there. 

Under this impression he reluctantly, but by his father's 
desire, pulled the three ears of wheat when ripe, and dibbled 
out the produce year after year. When enabled to sow it in 
quantities, and to compare it with Hunter's wheat, it was 
found to be obviously distinct from it, and also from any other 
sort Mr. Hope was acquainted with. He describes it as re- 
markably short and stiff in the straw, and from its unequal 
length a sheaf is generally a mass of ears from the band 
upward. Although to appearance there is little straw, yet 
when weighed there is less difference betwixt it and longer- 
strawed varieties than might be supposed, in consequence of 
its extreme density ; and in comparative trials with Hunter's 
wheat, Mr. Hope always found the new variety to yield as 



500 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

much weight of straw, though greatly less in bulk. For some 
years, at first, the quality was inferior to Hunter's, but latterly 
it has become far superior to it; and frequently the best sam- 
ples seen in Haddington market are of Fenton wheat. The 
only variety of wheat that Mr. Hope has ever had to surpass 
Fenton in pcint of yield of gain, is Spalding's red ; but the 
money value of the farmer was at least equal to the latter. 

The farm of Fenton Barns is generally of excellent quality, 
composed of rich, loamy clay, derived from basaltic and por- 
phyritic trap, and being in a high state of cultivation. 

The short, solid, firm straw of this new variety has given it 
a decided superiority over all other sorts. It is said that 
Fenton wheat is apt to become mildewed on low lying, soft 
soils; but while this is true to a certain extent, it is an objec- 
tion to which the long-strawed sorts are still more open. Fenton 
wheat is, however, principally adapted for sowing on naturally 
rich or highly-farmed land, and is not profitable when grown 
on soils where there is any difficulty in obtaining bulk of 
straw. The ear of this variety is of moderate length, but 
very square and evenly shaped ; grain round, plump, and of 
a pale white color. It weighs well in the bushel, and gives a 
great yield in proportion to the bulk of straw. 

Hopetown. — This variety was propagated by Mr. T. Sher- 
iff, late of Mungoswell's, East Lothian, from one ear found 
by the late Mr. Keid, of Drem, East Lothian. Its character- 
istics are long, stiff, bright-colored straw ; more than average 
length of ear, which runs a little to a point ; smooth chaff, 
free from awns ; grain bright, plump, and transparent, pro- 
ducing a beautiful sample, weighing well in the bushel. 

The crop is seldom so prolific as its appearance when grow- 
ing would warrant. 

It is rather tender in constitution ; and being very tardy in 
completing the process of flowering, it is very liable to be in- 
jured, in consequence of the wheat fly having a long time to 
deposit its eggs while the blossom is opening its chaff valves. 
It is, however, a good sort to sow on hard soil in good condi- 



FAVORITE BRITISH VARIETIES. 501 

tion, having a Southern exposure, where the free currents of 
air are not impeded by plantations or high hedges. 

Hunters Wheat is one of the oldest and most esteemed 
varieties in Scotland. It was discovered about half a century 
ago by the late Mr. Hunter, Tynefield, near Dunbas, East 
Lothian, by the road-side, on Coldingham Muir, Berwickshire. 
It is still largely cultivated in most of the eastern counties of 
Scotland, especially East Lothian, Fife and Forfas. It has 
stood its ground against many newer varieties, which, although 
more prolific on their first introduction, have been found to 
deteriorate so much, that their cultivation gradually lessened, 
and that of Hunter's wheat increased. It is remarkably well 
suited to medium and inferior soils, being hardy, and tiller- 
ing very freely in the spring, and continuing its growth 
steadily till autumn. In these respects it has been observed 
that while many of the newer and finer sorts of wheat look 
better in winter and in spring. Hunter will, year after year, 
bear comparison with them either in the sheaf, stack, sack, 
flour-mill or bakers' shelf. It is a great favorite with millers 
and bakers ; and its name to them is sufficient recommenda- 
tion to purchase, even although the sample may want the fine 
color of the white sorts. Its physiological characteristics are 
medium length of straw and ear, the latter thickish in the 
middle, tapering to the neck, and point a little awned and 
slightly running to a point; grain, of a brownish color, a 
little elongated in shape, but of a fine, hard, close, flinty 
texture, and weighing well in the bushel, sometimes as high as 
66 lbs., when grown on hard land. It is fully later in coming 
to maturity than most of the white wheats ; and it should 
never be sown on fields surrounded by woods, as in such cir- 
cumstances it usually suffers much from the attacks of fly. 
Neither should it be sown on rich alluvial soils in high condi - 
tion, as it will grow too bulky, and go down before the grain 
is perfected. 

It must be confessed that Hunter's wheat is neither so pure 
nor of so good quality as it used to be : and considering the 



502 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

very long period it has continued to maintain its high charac- 
ter unimpaired, this adulteration and deterioration are no 
doubt to be attributed to the introduction of so many new 
sorts, and consequent neglect of the older variety. Any man 
would confer a great boon upon a large proportion of farmers 
in Scotland, who would carefully select one good ear of Hun- 
ter's wheat, grown on firm, hard land, in an early climate, 
and from this ear raise up a pure stock. Notwithstanding its 
impurity and deterioration, Hunter's wheat is still a great fav- 
orite in Scotland ; and the only objection to be raised against 
it is, that it is now so mixed with other wheats, that go where 
you will for seed, it is impossible to obtain it pure. 

MungoswelV s Wheat. — We are indebted to Mr, Sheriff, 
Mungoswell's, East Lothian, for this variety of wheat, as well 
as Hopetown wheat, and the Sheriff oat. The Mungoswell's 
wheat was at first considered to be earlier and more prolific 
than Hunter's, but judging from the fact that its cultivation 
has not extended in any notable degree, we are forced to con- 
clude that it has not come up to the anticipation at first en- 
tertained regarding it. Pearl Wheat is one of the finest 
qualities of wheat in cultivation. It has been compared in 
appearance and habit of growth to Uxbridge wheat, Oxford 
Prize, and to Brodie's wheat. It has long, white, stiff straw ; 
square, medium-sized ear, quite free from awns ; grain small, 
round, plump and white, and placed very closely together in 
the ear ; weighs very heavy in the bushel ; produces an abun- 
dant quantity of flour, but of a softish quality. It is not 
very hardy, and. rarely very prolific ; but is early and well 
adapted for sowing on rich, easy soils, either in winter or 
spring. Frequent change of seeds from a better climate is 
necessary to prevent deterioration. 

Red Chaffed Wheat. — This is a rather short-strawed, but pro- 
lific variety. The ears are very square, and the chaff of a reddish 
color ; grain round, plump, affording a good sample. It is best 
adapted for rich, sheltered soils, in consequence of the stout- 
ness of its straw and liability to shed its seeds in high winds. 



FAVORITE BRITISH VARIETIES. 503 

Talavera Wheat, selected by Col. Le Couteur, Bellevue 
Villa, Jersey, from a field of the common Talavera, and first 
offered to the public in the Fall of 1838. Lawson describes 
it as a hardy sort ; remarkably broad, upright foliage, often 
yellowish in the spring but recovers rapidly afterward, straw 
rather short and flexible, brittle when over-ripe : ears loose, 
long, and tapering to a point; grain large, oblong, thin- 
skinned, very white, fine sample. Talavera is best adapted 
for sowing in spring, on black land, or easy soils in good 
order, but is not a safe variety to sow on clay soils. When 
grown as a winter wheat, it is rather short-strawed ; but if 
sown in spring the straw is sufficiently long to give a good 
bulk. Notwithstanding the beauty of the sample, it seldom 
weighs within two pounds per bushel of what its appearance 
would indicate. It is probably the best spring wheat in cul- 
tivation for the soils mentioned above. 

Velvet, or Woolly-eared Wheat. — This sort is much cultivated 
in Sussex and Kent. Its characteristics are short straw ; 
rather small, close, compact ears; chaff white and downy; 
grain of a semi-transparent, whitish color, but sometimes it 
presents a brownish appearance ; flour abundant, and of very 
fine quality. It is not prolific when sown in light land ; but 
on rich, loamy soils it yields remarkably well. 

In a trial with this sort, grown in Fifeshire, in 1840, after 
potatoes, on light, dry land, the crop was small but of very 
fine quality. Sown the following year, after summer fallow, 
on thick, loamy land, the produce was very great. Its cultiva- 
tion was, however, discontinued, in consequence of its woolly 
ears absorbing much moisture in damp or rainy weather, and 
being difficult to dry. 

Some Scotch wheats have become greatly mixed with velvet 
wheat, especially Hunter's variety. This is very observable 
when the crop is in full ear, and when seen between the spec- 
tator and the sun. In wet weather, the wet may be squeezed 
out of the ear by the hand, so absorptive and retentive is it 
of moisture, while, at the same time, and along side of velvet 



504 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

wheat, other and smoother chaffed varieties are perfectly dry 
internally. It is only a wheat for a dry climate. 

White Irish Wheat has been long cultivated in Ireland 
under the name of the Old White Irish.* It was introduced 
into Fifeshire in 1845, and since then it has been cultivated 
very successfully on the light and inferior soils of the trap 
formation. It is solely a winter wheat; plants small and 
creeping in spring, and so great is its propensity to tiller, 
that it seldom grows much to length until the ground is 
pretty well covered with plants; straw very tall, and more 
like that of rye than wheat; ears very long, loose, pointed, 
and open, easily wet, but soon dry ; chaff white, smooth, and 
slightly awned ; grain large, oblong, and of a brownish dull 
color, but of a very hard, flinty nature, and a great favorite 
with bakers for mixing with whiter and softer sorts. 

It is very prolific on medium, and even somewhat inferior 
soils, but on rich land it grows too tall, and goes down before 
the ear is filled. It is extremely hardy, and the growing 
plants soon recover their vigor after untoward weather. It is 
a late wheat, and only adapted for sowing in winter on early 
soils. After eight years experience in growing this sort, the 
writer is satisfied that no sort can compete in point of profit 
with the White Irish, when cultivated on light easy soils, or 
even on poor clay situated in an early climate. 

Morton's Red Strawed White Wheat. — This variety was 
introduced by Mr. John Morton, late of Whitfield Example 
Farm, Gloucestershire. Mr. Morton originally got two ears 
of wheat from the Rev. Mr. Hearn, Hatford, Berkshire ; both 
of which were very splendid, and contained upward of eighty 
grains each. The grains were dibbled separately, three inches 
apart, in six-inch rows. The seeds of the one ear produced a 

*It is somewhat doubtful if the so-called "White Irish" be a true 
white wheat, for although the stem and chaff have all the characteris- 
tics of the white varieties, the grain is more akin to the red sorts. So 
far, however, as its value to the miller and baker is concerned, it is 
quite equal to the white sorts. 



FAVORITE BRITISH VARIETIES. 505 

fine crop, and the second year there was as much as half an 
acre planted. The produce of the other ear was blighted and 
worthless. The name of Red Straw White Wheat was given 
to it by Mr. Morton, because the upper part of the stem as- 
sumes a purple or reddish color before the grain becomes ripe. 
The characteristics of this variety are : strong, tall, reedy 
straw, not apt to lodge ; square, close ear, of more than aver- 
age length, and not liable to shed its seeds in high winds; 
white ; round, plump grain, when well grown, but open in the 
breast, and coarse in unfavorable seasons, or when cultivated 
on peaty soils. It is remarkably well adapted for all soils 
usually deficient in yield of straw. It naturally inclines to 
grow thin in the ground, and should, therefore, be sown a 
little thickly. When growing, this wheat is easily distin- 
guished from other sorts by its peculiarly dark green color ; 
and when nearly ripe, by the reddish color of the stem imme- 
diately below the ear. It is not so liable to mildew as most 
of the other white varieties of wheat ; but owing to its great 
length of straw, it is not so well adapted for soft or peaty soils 
as the short straw kinds ; not, however, so much on account 
of any deficiency of yield as from want of quality. 

Red Beardless Winter Wheat- — Common or Old Red Wheat. — 
This sort was at one time rather extensively cultivated in 
Britain, but it has now been all but superseded by newer and 
more prolific varieties. It is a hardy, stiff-strawed variety, and 
is well suited for poorish clay soils. Lamma, or Red English 
Wheat, is a highly-esteemed variety in England and the north 
of France, but almost unknown in Scotland. It has abun- 
dance of straw, long ear, free from awns, tapering slightly to 
both extremities, closely-set grains across, but a good deal 
apart vertically. It is well adapted for secondary and some- 
what inferior soils. It is not so hardy as the common red 
wheat, and requires a climate where the winter is rather mild, 
such as prevails along the shores of the south and west of 
England. 

Spaldwq's Prolific Red Wheat. — This variety is the best of 
43' 



506 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

all the red wheats. No authentic account of its origin has yet 
been made public. From its name and character, there is 
reason to suppose that it is originally from Lincolnshire, upon 
the fenny lands of which immense crops of it are grown. The 
straw is remarkably tall, strong, and stiff, and not easily laid; 
ear long, square, and free from awn ; grain round, plump, and 
of a yellowish color; yields remarkably well, and weighs well 
in the bushel. It is, however, a soft wheat, and can only be 
sparingly used as a mixture with more flinty wheats, when the 
flour is intended for the finer purposes of the baker. Spal- 
ding's wheat is well adapted for clay soils, and for soft damp 
soils situated in a wheat climate. It is a winter wheat, but 
has been found to answer well in the eastern coast of Scotland 
when sown in spring. On the clay soils of the eastern dis- 
tricts of Fifeshire, it has been known repeatedly to produce 
eight quarters per acre. Sown along with the old White 
Irish, on a light trap soil, the latter invariably beats Spalding 
by fully four bushels per acre, while both are always superior 
to Hunter's variety. 

The most of the other varieties of red wheat, given in a pre- 
vious table, have nearly gone out of cultivation. Hickling's 
Prolific was in great favor for two or three years ; so also were 
the Blood Red and Golden Drop varieties ; but now the culti- 
vation of these has been all but discontinued, owing to their 
unsuitableness for the purposes of the miller and baker. One 
of the best of the red wheats, which has not attained much at- 
tention, is Clover's variety. It was selected and propagated 
by Mr. John Clover, Kirkling, Cambridgeshire. With a bag 
of this variety, Lawson gained the Highland Society's premium 
for the best red wheat, at Berwick-on-Tweed, in 1841. 

Piper's Thickset. — On this we have been favored with the 
following, sent by the gentleman whose name it bears : — " I 
found a remarkable ear in my field some fen years ago, and I 
cultivated it till I got about forty acres. I then offered it to 
the public, more on account of its great yield than of its qual- 
ity, though I still think it is better than the average of red 



FAVORITE BRITISH VARIETIES. 507 

wheats. It was then, and perhaps is now, the shortest and 
stiffest strawed wheat in England. It is very thin skinned, 
the bran from it being very light. It is more particularly 
adapted for good land, and hollow bottom or meadow soils, 
where the crop is likely to be lodged or laid. In several in- 
stances it has grown sixty bushels per statute acre ; but the 
farmers do not now grow it generally, as it does not grow straw 
enough to please them, and (which is certainly a fault) the 
ears are apt to break off at harvest time, if it is not cut early ; 
though I don't know why farmers should not attend to their 
business as well as other people, and cut and cart it in proper 
time." 

Reddish Bearded Varieties of Wheat. — The only one of any 
importance to the British farmer is Fern April, or Awny 
Wheat. Its characteristics are : tall, rye-like straw, not easily 
lodged ; ear awned and spreading, running much to a point at 
the upper extremity ; grain longish and of a reddish brown 
color, which weighs remarkably well in the bushel. It is a 
very early wheat, and can be sown any time in April, and will 
ripen sooner than any other variety of spring or winter wheat. 
It was sown at one time largely and with great success in 
Scotland ; but latterly it deteriorated so much in produce, that 
it has fallen considerably out of cultivation. This deteriora- 
tion is, however, greatly owing to the want of care in changing 
seed, and careful pickling with blue vitriol — April Wheat 
being more than ordinarily subject to bunt and black ball. 

It sells at 4s. per quarter less than the white wheat ; but, 
notwithstanding this drawback, it is well worthy of being cul- 
tivated on inferior soils in late districts, and also because it 
offers prolonged opportunities of being sown from the 1st of 
March to the 1st of May. The seed should be changed every 
two years at least, from a hard soil and early climate, and 
pickled, before sowing, with 2 lbs. of blue vitriol, dissolved in 
two gallons of water to each quarter of seed. 

There should be mentioned under this head the Fingered 
Egyptian, or Mummy Wheat, which, though not grown to any 



508 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

extent, owing to its inferior quality, is yet notable for its large 
produce, and is often cultivated on allotment grounds, and on 
small farms, where quantity, rather than quality, is desired. 
The Rev. G. Wilkins, of Wix, in Essex, informs us that he 
has grown, with no artificial assistance, four thousand fold 
from seed of this sort; that some of the ears have had eleven 
off-shoots, and that they have contained altogether 150 grains 
in one ear ; he has also had sometimes 60 ears from a single 
seed. The only other varieties of red bearded wheat, worthy 
of cultivation, are the Cone, or Rivet wheats. There are three 
varieties, viz. : Cone-rivet, or Anti-fly wheat, common Rivet 
wheat of England, and Poll-rivet wheat. 

They all produce tall, strong straw, long, well filled ears, 
awned, but the awns sometimes disappear before harvest, being 
easily broken off in windy weather; grain coarse, and the flour 
much disliked by bakers, except for dusting their boards and 
tins, for which purpose it is considered superior to all other 
sorts. Cone wheat is cultivated to a considerable extent in 
the strong soils of the southern and central districts of Eng- 
land, where the yield is so much greater than that of any other 
variety, as more than compensates for want of quality. 

Hybrid IVheat. — One of the most successful attempts at 
hybridizing the wheat plant that has probably ever been 
made, was accomplished in 18-16, by Mr. Hugh Raynbind, 
Laverstoke, Hampshire. In that year, Mr. Raynbind grew a 
few plants of Piper's Thickset (a red variety), in a garden at 
Hengrave. There he inoculated with pollen from Hopetown 
wheat. The produce was a few shriveled grains, which were 
planted early in autumn of the same year; and by dividing 
the roots, the number of plants was greatly increased. These 
plants produced a great variety of wheat, both red and white ; 
some of the ears bearing a perfect resemblance to Piper's 
Thickset, while others partook of the character of the Hope- 
town in every thing except the color of the chaff; others had 
half the ear thin and open, and the rest closely set; thus in 
the same ear showing the characteristics of both parents. The 



HYBRID WHEAT. 509 

new hybrid which was selected and propagated is a red wheat, 
having a stiff straw, of medium length, and promises to be a 
valuable acquisition to the cultivators of red wheat. 

The red varieties of wheat are generally hardier and more 
easily grown than the white sorts, and although of less value 
to the miller, they are fully more profitable to the grower, in 
consequence of the better crop which they produce. Another 
advantage the red wheats possess is their comparative immu- 
nity from the attacks of mildew and fly. 

As a general rule it is profitable to cultivate red wheats on 
poorish soils, situated in eariy climates, in preference to the 
white sorts ; but wherever the soil is a good clay, or firm loam 
in rich condition, the white kinds are to be preferred, as they 
are equally prolific, and command a higher price in the market. 
While it is not desirable to grow many sorts on the farm, still 
it is a safe plan to have two or three varieties, in order that 
success may be rendered more certain, and failure less felt; 
for it is a well observed fact, that the prolificness of any single 
variety of wheat differs, year by year, according to the pecu- 
liarities of the season, during the active period of the plant's 
growth. Thus, in a very dry year, the long-strawed sorts are 
most prolific ; whereas, in wet seasons, the shorter varieties 
excel. 

Then, again, the cultivation of a limited variety of wheats 
on the same farm is generally rendered necessary by inequal- 
ities of soil ; and every farmer should try by experiment what 
sorts are best adapted for his particular soil or soils, and hav- 
ing found these out, to adhere to them until experience has 
supplied him with something better. A blind preference of 
any particular kind of wheat, because it has been cultivated 
time immemorial in the district, and without an effort being 
made to test its worth with other sorts, is as much to be con- 
demned as a continual shifting, year after year, from one new 
variety to a newer, in the vain hope of getting possession of 
something which will throw all its predecessors in the shade. 
The natural tendency is for some particular sort gradually to 



510 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

establish itself in a district, and for many years to hold its 
ground against all compeers ; but, sooner or later, it is found 
to degenerate and give place to a newer sort. The cause of 
this degeneracy should be sought for less in the seed itself 
than in the treatment to which it is subjected. Unless on the 
very finest soils, and in the best climates, no variety of wheat 
can be long cultivated without manifesting signs of degener- 
acy. This arises from the imperceptible, but certain degra- 
dation of the organs of vitality, in consequence of imperfect 
development, and, in very bad seasons, of functional derange- 
ment, and even specific organic disease itself. The obvious 
cure is a habitual system of changing seed from a more genial 
climate ; but as this sometimes can not be done without a 
change of variety also, many prefer to go on trusting to their 
favorite sort recovering its original character, rather than run 
the risk of sowing another from a distance, which may not be 
adapted to their soil and climate. 

Under these circumstances, the proper mode of procedure 
is, to endeavor to regenerate the variety which it is desirable 
to retain as being best suited to any particular farm, by send- 
ing a few bushels of it, well picked and dressed, to a better 
soil and climate, to be grown for one or two years, and from 
this to obtain a fresh stock of seed with an invigorated consti- 
tution. The west and north of England could thus be sup- 
plied from the south-eastern counties of England, and the 
west and north of Scotland from East Lothian, or even from 
some county south of the Humber. A great deal can also 
be done in the way of maintaining the vigor and purity of 
seed wheat, by selecting a large well formed ear of any sort, 
and subjecting it to separate propagation, and garden-like 
culture, until a sufficient stock for field-purposes is obtained. 
It is by such means that nearly all our best varieties have 
been propagated ; and although bearing new names, they are, 
no doubt, nothing more than finer specimens of older sorts. 
The full benefit of high cultivation of the soil can not be 
obtained without a careful attention to the kind and quality 



VARIETIES ADAPTED TO DIFFERENT SOILS. 511 

of the seeds sown, and even the profitless results of bad culti- 
vation may, in a considerable degree, be modified by employ- 
ing good seed, adapted to the soil, and which has been 
procured from a better climate. For soils of a firm texture, 
naturally good, and in high cultivation, the best kinds of 
wheat are Fen ton, Morton's Red-strawed White, Red-chaffed 
White, Pearl, and Chiddam, among the white varieties; and 
Spalding's Prolific, Lammas, and Clove's Red among the red 
sort. For medium soils, in fair condition, the long-strawed 
varieties should be preferred, such as Hunter's, Hopetoun, 
Mungoswell's for winter, and Talavera for spring sowing. On 
the poorer class of soils, the best sorts are " White Irish " and 
common Red for winter, and Fern, or April wheat for spring 
sowing. For soft, growthy land, Fenton's and Piper's thick- 
set are probably the best adapted : and even Morton's red- 
strawed variety has been known to stand well on such soils, 
but the sample is always coarse and uneven. 



512 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

WHEATS IN OHIO. 

Red Bearded Winter Wheat. 

Blizzard is a sub-variety of the " old red bearded " variety; 
it is cultivated in Ross county. 

Branta. — Introduced into Putnam county in 1857, by Geo. 
Skinner, Esq. The straw is stiff and strong — heads long ; 
berry red, long and hard. It ripens early, and on a black 
muck (poor soil for wheat) it yielded eighteen bushels for one 
sowed. 

California. — (See plate). This variety was introduced by 
J. Buffington into Lawrence county ten years ago. It is 
hardy, and ripens before the Mediterranean, consequently it 
escapes all injuries from the fly, rust or midge. The yield is 
considerably more than that of the Mediterranean ; and is 
regarded in Lawrence county as a prime red wheat. 

China Velvet is a velvety bearded variety of red wheat. It 
has been cultivated some eight years in Washington county, 
where it is seldom attacked by either rust or fly, and produces 
from fifteen to thirty bushels per acre. It ripens at the same 
time that the Mediterranean does in that county, namely, the 
first of July. 

China was introduced into Clark county by Jeremiah La- 
zell, sen. ; it yields from fifteen to thirty-six bushels per acre, 
according to soil, cultivation and season, and ripens at the 
same time that the Mediterranean does, namely, about the 
first of July. 

Club. — Was introduced into Stark county three years ago 



WHEATS JN OIILO. 



by Hon. Thos. W. Chapman, of Navarre. It yields from fif- 
teen to twenty-five bushels per acre, is subject to " rust, fly 
and weevil " (midge), chiefly on account of its late ripening, 
namely, about eight or ten days later than the Mediterranean. 
Undoubtedly a southern wheat. 

Crate White. — In Huron, and some 
other northern county, a variety called 
the crate was considerably cultivated dur- 
ing a period of some twenty-five years, but 
finally abandoned on account of the ra- 
vages of the midge. It ripened about the 
tenth of July, yielded about twenty bush- 
els per acre under ordinary cultivation, 
and yielded forty pounds of good flour per 
bushel. It is nowhere cultivated in the 
State at present. 

Cretan Wheat. — (Binkelweizen, Ger- 
man). I am indebted to Geo. Skinner, 
Esq., of Kalida, for some excellent speci- 
mens of this variety of wheat. He sent 
it under the name of " Long Red wheat." 
The straw is light ; it ripens early, and 
yields at the rate of sixteen bushels for 
one of seed. The berry is red, long, 
shrunken and flinty. It has from ten to \ 
twelve breasts on each side, and generally 
has three grains in each breast. It re- 
quired a dry, cool season to bring it into 
perfection. It may prove a valuable ac- 
quisition when it is perfectly acclimated, 
but at present its grains do not present a 
very marketable appearance. 

Cretan Wheat. 

Ccnada Flint was introduced into Licking county in 1844, 
by Thos. Wilson. It ripened about the 10th of July; it 
produced good flour, but for some reason was soon abandoned. 





514 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

There is a white bearded wheat bearing the same name which 
is jet cultivated. 

Egyptian Wheat — Has been highly commended in the 
news journals, and is known under the names of Egyptian, 
Syrian, Smyrna, Many Spiked, Keed, and Wild-goose wheat. 
It derives its latter name from a story, which is current in the 
north, that four or five kernels, from which the American 
«tock has proceeded, were found in the crop of a wild goose, 
which was shot on the west shore of Lake Champlain. It is 
called reeel wheat from the great strength of its straw, which 
serves to prevent its being prostrated in the field. It does 
not yield so much flour or meal as other kinds of wheat ; and 
the flour is scarcely superior to that obtained from the finest 
barley. We find it described in some authorities as Mummy 
Wheat, or Wheat Three Thousand Years Old. The following 
is a brief popular alleged history of it : It is said that some 
years ago a gentleman having occasion to unroll an Egyptian 
mummy, found inclosed with the body a few grains of wheat, 
which afterward, upon being sown with the modern Egyptian 
wheat, was found to be entirely dissimilar. The former con- 
tained nearly a hundred stalks, ranging in length from nearly 
five to upward of six feet, the leaves broader than usual, 
and fully an average as to length. The grain was in two rows 
or triplets, and on some, twenty triplets on a side, or forty on 
the ear. The ear contained a few barbs or awns on the upper 
end, and was open and distant between the grains. It flow- 
ered nearly a fortnight before any of the varieties sown at the 
same period. The modern Egyptian is dwarf, not more than 
four feet high, closely set and barbed in every part of the ear, 
and its general resemblance to its ancient progenitor is not 
greater than that of barley to wheat. Egyptian wheat, found 
in the tombs of the 18th Dynasty— i. e., from B. C. 1822 to 
B. C. 1476 — has germinated when sown in Germany, and is 
frequently found in the tombs of Egypt. It has been grown 
by P. Poorman, in Stark county. 



WHEATS IN OHIO. 515 

This is an indifferent variety of wheat. The straw grows 
to the hight of about five feet, is thick and pithy ; the leaves 
are often ten inches long ; the head, or rather panicle, is 
about four inches long, and nearly two wide and deep, and 
when ripe is of a reddish brown. The head consists of from 
five to twelve small heads densely compacted ; the awns or 
beards are often four inches long, and of a very dark brown 
or blackish color. The lower part of the grain is inordinately 
swollen — it is very starchy, but not hard or flinty. 

Golden Chaff. — This very popular variety was introduced 
into Fairfield county some ten years ago. Six Stager intro- 
duced it into Mercer county three years ago. It yields from 
twenty to forty bushels per acre ; it improves by high culture, 
is not subject to rust or fly, and ripens with the Mediterranean, 
about the first of July. It should be cut before fully ripe, as 
it sheds very readily. The berry is rather lightish red. The 
general appearance of the head is much like the Mediter- 
ranean, but the color of the head and straw is yellower than 
that of the Mediterranean. This year (1859) many of the 
breasts or spikelets contained four grains each. It alsc 
strongly resembles the Quaker wheat. 

Gcnessee Flint. — Was introduced into Morgan county from 
Belmont county. It has been cultivated in Morgan during 
the past ten years ; it ripens about the 25th of June, is not 
affected by rust ; improves by culture, produces from twenty- 
five to forty bushels per acre, and yields forty pounds of good 
flour to the bushel. It is cultivated to a considerable extent, 
but is objectionable on account of its rough, bristling beards. 
There is a smooth white wheat also known by this name. 

Hard Wlicat. — Introduced into Putnam county by George 
Skinner, in 1857. The straw is light ; head about three inches 
long, very loose, having from six to nine breasts on a side, 
and tapering from the base to the point. Each breast, until 
nearly to the top of the head, contains three grains, the 
remainder two only, terminating in a point with one grain. 



51G THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The berry is red and shrunken. The yield is thirteen bushels 
for one sown. Mr. S. says it is inferior in every respect to 
the Mediterranean, which it closely resembles in general 
appearance, when in the field. 

Indiana. — This variety has been cultivated during the past 
twelve years, in Lawrence county. It ripens about the 20th 
of June, consequently escapes the rust and midge ; yields 
from fifteen to twenty bushels per acre, and produces forty 
pounds of good flour per bushel. There is a white, smooth 
wheat of the same name. 

Mediterranean (see Plate). — This variety is now, perhaps, 
more extensively cultivated than any other variety ever has 
been in this State. Its general history we stated on a previ- 
ous page. It was introduced into Ohio as much as . thirty 
years ago,* but was not extensively cultivated, nor held in 
great esteem, because it was liable to fall or lodge, as it yet 
does in Erie and Mahoning counties; but continued cultiva- 
tion has given it a stiff straw in most of the other counties. 
The berry, which at first was long and dark-red colored, has 
'become plumper, and of a lighter color. Millers everywhere 
attest, with great unanimity, to its improved flouring qualities. 
There is little doubt, but no direct proof, that by cultivation 
this variety has deteriorated into the white bearded variety of 
Mediterranean, which is now grown in Darke and some other 
counties. Being a hardy variety, and less liable to change 
from climate and soil than some of the finer varieties, there is 
little doubt that the variety called Quaker wheat, in Preble 
county, owes its paternity to the red Mediterranean, cultivated 
and perhaps acclimated to a more southern latitude. In War- 
ren county it is deteriorating. 

A good crop. — Our respected fellow-citizen, William Carmi- 
chael, Esq., raised this year upon twenty-one acres of land, 

* James Rollen introduced this variety into Mahoning county, under 
the name of " Black Sea Wheat." 



RED BEAR DLL) \V1XTER WHEATS. 517 

one thousand and twenty-six bushels of Mediterranean wheat, 
being a fraction below fifty-one and a half bushels to the acre, 
averaging sixty pounds to the bushel. This is a very great 
yield ; larger, we believe, than was ever made before on this 
shore, and we question whether the State can beat it. This 
shows what good farming will accomplish. The land on which 
this wheat was raised, is not better wheat land than two-thirds 
of this county, but has been greatly improved by the use of 
marl and marsh mud. — American Farmer (Baltimore). 

The desirable qualities of this variety are, 1st, it withstands 
the attack of the Hessian fly better than any other ; 2nd, it is 
not liable to winter-kill ; 3d, it improves by cultivation ; 4th, 
and because it ripens early, but from no other cause, does it 
escape the rust and the midge. In several counties, where it 
was sowed late, it was found as susceptible to rust as any 
other variety, and its long and stiff beard did not protect it 
from the midge. It perhaps yields less now than it did fifteen 
or twenty years ago ; although when properly cultivated it not 
unfrequently weighs sixty-five pounds to the bushel. Another 
desirable quality is attributed to it, viz.: that it will do well on 
a poorer soil than any other variety. A very careful farmer 
from Mahoning county, writes that he has raised twenty bush- 
els to the acre on a soil in which the Blue-stem invariably 
failed. 5th, The certainty of the crop, rather than on account 
of any of its qualities, is perhaps the only reason why it has 
not only been continued in cultivation by the best farmers, 
but has become the most popular wheat in the State. Its pe- 
riod of ripening varies from June 15 (statement of Hon. A. 
L. Perrill, Lithopolis), in Fairfield county, to July 15 (state- 
ment of George Pow, New Albany), in Mahoning county ; but 
a majority of the correspondents name July 1st, as the general 
period of ripening. 

Missouri. — Is a velvet bearded variety, and was introduced 
into Lawrence county a few years since by S. Record. It has 
yielded thirty bushels to the acre, but does not improve with 



518 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

culture ; being very late, it is subject to all the diseases to 
which wheat is liable. 

Mt. Olympus. — Was introduced into Madison county from 
Patent Office. The yield was good ; straw and head very 
heavy and dark ; four rowed, with heavy beards resembling 
barley ; it was considerably affected by the midge. 

Red Chaff Mediterranean, is perhaps an improved or sub- 
variety of the lied Bearded Mediterranean, introduced two 
years ago from Lancaster county, Pa., into Montgomery coun- 
ty, 0., by S. Bohrer, who claims that it is superior in every 
respect to the old variety, but Mr. David French, of Miami 
county, thinks it inferior. It has also been cultivated during 
the past several years, by Wm. Benjamin Conard, of High- 
land Co., who claims that it is better than the old Mediterra- 
nean, says it " stands up " better — ripens earlier — and is not 
affected by the midge. 

Its appearance in the field is very like the old Mediterra- 
nean ; but when ripe the straw and head are considerably 
darker. The head tapers to a point. It has seven to nine 
breasts on a side, with two grains to a breast. Grain some- 
what flinty. Sheds very readily; berry full and plump and 
rather light colored. It strongly resembles in color and ap- 
pearance the Old Bed Chaff bearded. 

Old Red Chaff (see Plate.) — This was once a very popular 
variety, but is now sadly on the decline. It has been culti- 
vated in Clermont county, for upward of 50 years. Its 
yield is fully equal to the Mediterranean, producing a much 
finer berry with a lighter colored and thinner skin. Of late 
years it appears much more liable to rust than formerly, while 
it suffers severely from the midge. Farmers would now sow 
more largely of this variety, were it not so difficult to procure 
clean seed. It ripens about the same time with the Mediterra- 
nean. Bed Chaff Beardy wheat was introduced into Muskin- 
gum county, by John Dent, in 1808. But the millers set 
their face against it ; called it a coarse, rye-like wheat ; would 



RED BEARDED WINTER WHEATS. 519 

not make good flour, and gave several cents less per bushel 
for it. But it has some hardy and productive qualities which 
induced the farmers to persevere in cultivating it, and it ulti- 
mately so improved in character that Mr. William Galigher, 
an intelligent miller of Zanesville, remarked in reference to 
it, some seven years since, that he considered it the wheat of 
this valley, and he would not care if there was not a bushel 
of any other kind raised. That it was more nutritious, etc. 
By reference to the Patent Office Report for 1848, page 263, 
you will see it stated that a specimen of flour manufactured 
by Beaumont & Co., analyzed by the Government chemist, of 
Zanesville, produced a higher percentage of gluten, or nutri- 
tious matter than any specimen examined by him in any of 
the Eastern or Western States. There is little doubt that this 
flour was manufactured of Red Chaff, as it was then the prin- 
cipal wheat raised in the vicinity. The Mediterranean, when 
first introduced, was subject to precisely the same objection as 
the Red Chaff, but it is very rapidly improving. 

The Red Chaff Beardy was introduced into Eastern Ohio, in 
1808, by whom is unknown. At that early period and for many 
years afterward, up to 1835, it was more successfully raised 
than the old varieties, of White Chaff Smooth, or White Chaff 
Beardy ; as these old varieties were subject to scab, and that 
it produced sick wheat so much dreaded by the first settlers of 
Ohio. But so soon as the Red Chaff was introduced on river 
and creek bottoms, it was found that it was not subject to 
scab, or to produce sick wheat, and hence became the prevail- 
ing variety for many years. 

The Red Chaff Beardy for a number of years after it was 
introduced ground harsh, and did not make flour of so fair a 
quality as it did afterward, when it became properly acclimated, 
and was produced on a black oak and white oak soil, and was 
harvested early, while there yet remained some little greenness 
in the straw. Not so the Red Chaff Smooth ; as a red wheat, 
it was soft and tender to grind into flour, and flour of an ex- 
cellent quality. 



520 



THE W1IEAT PLANT. 




Pyramidal Wheat (?) 
Several samples of the 
wheat was sent to me 
by Geo. Skinner, Esq., 
of Kalida, Putnam eo., 
0. The straw is light, 
and pithy toward the 
head — in some parts of 
Germany it is used for 
braiding or plaiting. 
The beards are short, 
very compact, and flat- 
tened laterally, so as to 
expose the rachis on 
the one side. The ber- 
ry is a lightish color, 
rather short, plump and 
very hard. There are 
two grains only in each 
breast or spikelet — nev- 
er three. It ripens early 
and yields at the rate 
of sixteen bushels for 
one of seed. It will 
grow on very poor soil. 
It is grown in many 
parts of Germany in 
preference to some bet- 
ter varieties, because its 
long beards protect it 
from various depreda- 
tors. 

Quaker Wheat. — This 
variety, which undoubt- 
edly is a sub-variety of 



Oi'vmidal Wheat— Hedgehog Wheat. 



RED BEARDED WINTER WHEATS. 521 

the red bearded Mediterranean, was introduced into 
Preble county, about thirteen years ago by D. Dailey and 
Geo. D. Hendricks, who, in 1854, gave the following account 
of it : — " In the winter of 1844-5, 1 visited North Carolina on 
financial business for my neighbor and friend, Enoch Taylor — 
our worthy President; and either promiscuously or providen- 
tially (I think by Divine Providence), our brother farmer, 
David Dailey, of Jackson Tp., saw fit to accompany me, jour- 
neying from three to five hundred miles out of his way for 
company's sake. While attending church at a lonely school- 
house in a dense pine forest, in the vicinity of the ' Shallow 
Ford ' of ' Deep River,' and not far from the far-famed 
' Beard's Hatter Shop,' brother Dailey heard of a new variety 
of wheat, called there and here the ' Quaker Wheat.' He 
having some distant relations or near acquaintances there- 
abouts, accompanied one of the brothers home and possessed 
himself of one quart, all told, of the new variety of wheat. 
This he placed in the end of his wallet to balance our dinner, 
and brought it safely to his homestead, where he now lives ; 
and continued to sow, and sow, and re-sow the product, which 
has proven a greater blessing to the people of Preble county 
than any other one incident in her history ; and why? is 
asked mentally by scores of farmers here who are not advised 
of its properties and qualities. It is the very kind of wheat 
desired by all ; a large berry, thin bran ; and it has almost 
proved impervious to all the evils attending the raising of 
wheat in this latitude. It, like the Mediterranean, is not so 
liable to destruction by rust or devastation by the fly — stands 
winter freezing better than most varieties ; and, take it all in 
all, it is the best, because the surest variety raised north or 
south of us — yielding from 45 to 50 lbs. of flour to the 
bushel. So far as we know, it has made at worst (the season 
of general rust, and this year of general winter freezing and 
ravages of the fly) an average crop, while, with the exceptions 
of these two years, it has, under good tillage, increased the 
average product per acre from twenty to forty per cent. 
44 



522 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

With from ordinary to first-rate tillage on good ground, its 
yield will range from 12 to 40 bushels per acre. And so 
great has it grown in favor in portions of this county, that it 
is all-the-go with our wheat-growers. 

" Now mark what this one quart of wheat has done for this 
people in the short period of nine years. I think I am in 
bounds of reason, when I aver that this community has been 
directly or indirectly benefited more than 8100,000 ; and had 
all the increase of seed been only applied to sowing, the 
advantages would have been still greater — far, far beyond the 
comprehension of the ordinary thinker; }'es, millions of 
bushels beyond what even a mathematician would naturally 
suppose. If we estimate the first quart to produce 20 quarts, 
and continue that amount in arithmetical progression, we 
have the astounding product at the ninth (the past) harvest, 
of sixteen thousand million bushels — quite enough to seed all 
creation and bread ' the rest of mankind.' 

" I have been thus explicit in giving you the pedigree of 
this ' Quaker Wheat,' because of its paying properties, as 
also to reach your ear in regard to the necessity and import- 
ance of not only the members of this association of human 
benefactors, but all others engaged in agriculture, to increase 
the productiveness of their farms. If the average yield per 
acre in Preble county should, as it can, increase ten per 
cent., it would add at least $100,000 to the wealth of the 
producers of old Preble." 

This wheat originally had a red chaff, which by careful 
and thorough cultivation has been changed into a white chaff. 
It has become quite a popular variety in Preble and the adja- 
cent counties. In appearance it much resembles the Mediter- 
ranean (see plate). The berry is of rather a finer quality 
than the Mediterranean. 

This variety owes much of its popularity to the fact that it 
ripens at the same time that the Mediterranean does (June 25 
to 28), thus securing it against the rust and midge. 

Red Chaff] Baltimore Red Chaff. — This is perhaps a sport 



RED BEARDED WINTER WHEATS. 523 

or variety of the Old Red Chaff. Forty years ago it was 
introduced into Holmes county by J. Mackey. It has been 
cultivated for more than 30 years in some of the northern 
counties ; it is a good wheat but has a very weak straw, and 
consequently liable to lodge ; the yield is about the same as 
the Mediterranean, and as it ripens about the same time as 
the latter, it is no more liable to attacks of the midge, fly, or 
rust. It is generally being superseded by the Mediterranean, 
although the most of our correspondents are of the opinion 
that the berry improves by culture. 

Rock. — Ten years ago H. Rogers introduced this variety 
into Hamilton county, where it is steadily gaining friends as 
it improves by cultivation. It possibly is a variety of the 
Mediterranean, as it ripens at the same time, but yields rather 
a larger product, and is equally exempt from all the injuries 
incident to this cereal. 

Red Bearded. — This is a sub-variety, if not a synonym of 
the Old Red Chaff, differing from it no more than might 
reasonably be expected by culture, soil, etc. It is one of the 
varieties introduced into the State at an early day. Gen. J. 
T. Worthington writes that it has been cultivated upward of 
40 years in Ross county. Twenty-five years ago Thomas 
Gardner introduced it into Lawrence county. It is a variety 
well known to all the " early settlers " throughout the entire 
State. It does not yield as well as the Mediterranean, ripens 
rather later, and is liable to be attacked by rust. 

Stubble. — This variety once gave promise of great popular- 
ity, but being rather late, it could not so well, as some of the 
other varieties, withstand the attacks of insects, rust, etc., and 
is now, we believe, entirely abandoned. 

Sidle. — This is one of those sports which so frequently 
occur in the culture of wheat. There is no doubt that this 
variety owes it paternity to the Old Red Chaff, and for all 
practical purposes may be regarded as an improvement on the 
old variety. It was introduced into Muskingum county about 
sixteen years ago, the seed having been brought from Chester 



524 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

county, Pennsylvania. It has been affected very slightly by 
culture, soil, etc., lias yielded 33 bushels to the acre, is hardy, 
not liable to be attacked by midge or rust. It ripens fully 
ten days later than the Mediterranean. 

Shot. — This variety was introduced into Seneca county five 
years ago by Win. Barrick ; one year afterward it was intro- 
duced into Montgomery county. It produces a better yield 
than the Mediterranean ; ripens at the same time, but in Sen- 
eca county is subject to injury from insects, which it escapes 
in Montgomery. 

Star Buck. — This variety has been cultivated in Lawrence 
county during the past several years. It ripens at about the 
same time that the Mediterranean does; is not affected by fly 
or rust, and yields largely a superior quality of flour. 

Turkey was introduced into Miami county three years ago 
from the Patent Office. It ripens about the first of July ; is 
not affected by rust or weevil ; improves by culture, and yields 
45 pounds of good quality of flour per bushel. The yield per 
acre under ordinary cultivation is about 25 bushels. Mr. G. 
W. Morris, of Troy, is of opinion that this variety will prove 
to be a valuable acquisition. 

Velvet or Crate (see Plate). — Twenty-five years ago this 
variety was introduced into Muskingum county, where it has 
yielded 35 bushels per acre. Twenty years ago it was intro- 
duced into Defiance county, but does not yield as well there. 
It ripens fully ten days later than the Mediterranean, and is 
subject to rust, but remains stationary, i. c, it neither im- 
proves nor deteriorates by culture. But the flour from it is 
very coarse and dark. It requires a strong soil — has long 
awns — the chaff and bran both are of a reddish cast. 

White Chaff. — This variety has been cultivated during the 
past 15 or 20 years in Preble county. It yields about 15 
bushels per acre; degenerates by cultivation, is seriously 
affected by midge and rust, and ripens several days later than 
the Mediterranean. It is considered as being u worn out; " in 
other words, there are many varieties which yield more, and 



SMOOTH RED WINTER WHEATS. 525 

are not so precarious, so that the variety in question has been 
abandoned. 

Yellow Bearded. — This variety was introduced into Defiance 
county some 15 years ago, by Mr. Churchman. It yields 
about as well as the Mediterranean, ripens at the same time 
that the latter does (July 4), and is equally exempt from 
injuries by insects, rust, etc.; and, more than all, yields a 
greater proportion and better quality of flour. 

Smooth Red Winter Wheats. 

Alabama. — See May. 

Australia (see Plate). — This variety was introduced into 
Richland county by S. H. Tranger, three or four years ago. 
The straw is bright yellow, the head a darkish brown of me- 
dium size ; there are from 9 to 12 breasts on each side, each 
containing 3 grains. The breasts are rather loose at the lower 
part of the head, but more compact at the top. It ripens 
about the 10th of July; yields 20 bushels per acre under or- 
dinary culture. The berry is large, amber colored, plump — 
weighs 62 pounds to the bushel, yields 42 pounds of fine, or 
39 pounds of superfine flour per bushel. The chaff is heavy, 
and the grain is not much affected by the fly. 

Blue Chaff. — This variety has been cultivated in Tuscara- 
was county during the past forty years, and about 15 years in 
Van Wert. On good high lands, with a sunny slope, it has 
frequently yielded 35 bushels to the acre. It improves by 
culture ; is somewhat subject to rust, fly, and midge, but ripens 
nearly a week later than the Mediterranean. It yields 40 
pounds of good flour per bushel. 

Blue Stem. — Many of the more recent varieties of smooth 
red wheats were no doubt derived from this standard variety. 
We find it cultivated in Stark, Tuscarawas and Carroll coun- 
ties, full forty years ago. It was no doubt brought there by 
immigrants from Pennsylvania. Twenty-five years ago Wm. 
Hughs sowed some in Holmes county ; it has been a standard 
variety for the last 25 or 30 years in Harrison, Hocking, Cosh- 



526 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

octon, Morgan and Sandusky counties, as well as in those 
above named. There is perhaps no variety which repays good 
cultivation so well, or yields so little when indifferently culti- 
vated as does this variety. When properly managed and in a 
favorable season it has yielded as much as 40 bushels to the 
acre — (Stark, Tuscarawas, Carroll and Harrison counties), 
but on the other hand in quite a number of counties in or- 
dinary seasons it yielded no more than 8 to 10 bushels. It 
ripens three to six days later than the Mediterranean (beard- 
ed), is slightly subject to fly, rust and midge. We have 
learned of a single instance only where it was winter-killed, 
and that was on a bleak knob in Harrison county. A very 
intelligent correspondent from Tuscarawas county says that 
" the county would be many thousand dollars richer if no 
other variety of red wheat had ever been introduced. It 
makes as good a quality of flour as does any red wheat. There 
is a white wheat known by the same name." 

Carolina, Kentucky Red (see Plate). — This variety is known 
as Kentucky, or Early-ripe, in Darke county, where it was in- 
troduced eighteen years ago by J. Hunter and J. P. Turpen. 
It was introduced undoubtedly from Kentucky direct into 
Logan county, under the name of "Kentucky, or Early-ripe." 
Eight years ago it found its way into Tuscarawas county, 
under the name of Carolina icheat ; six years ago John Maid- 
low introduced it into Putnam county; Moses Hoagland in- 
troduced it into Holmes county several years since, and, 
lastly, Mr. Keys introduced it into Wayne county five years 
ago. Our correspondents, with great unanimity state that it 
thrives best on good, rich fallow grounds ; yields under or- 
dinary culture about 20 bushels per acre. In all the above 
named counties it appears to have escaped the midge, resisted 
the fly, and suffered slightly from rust, but in Logan it was 
from its first introduction so exceedingly liable to attacks 
from fly, midge and rust, that in a few years it was entirely 
abandoned ; after 15 years culture in Butler county, it dete- 
riorated so as to become entirely worthless. Forty-three 



. SMOOTH RED WINTER WHEATS. 527 

bushels per acre have been harvested in Putnam county. It 
improves by culture, and ripens at the same time that the 
Mediterranean does. 

The head is of medium length, lightish brown when fully 
ripe, and the glumes (chaff) is not unfrequently spotted. 
Each head has from 7 to 12 breasts, generally each breast 
contains 3 grains. The grain is light colored, slightly flinty, 
and somewhat shrunken. The breasts are considerably spread 
out, so as to give to the head a rather flattish appearance. It 
should be cut before fully ripe. 

Dayton, Whig, Malta, Maltese, Smooth or Bald Mediterrane- 
an (see Plate). — This variety of wheat has found its way into 
several counties throughout the State, from the vicinity of 
Dayton, but is known by the above mentioned names. The 
specimens forwarded to me from the several counties were all 
of good size — the engraving was made from a medium sized 
head. The apex or upper portion of the head has the breasts 
very much crowded, so much so that the upper seven breasts 
occupy no more than half the space on the rachis which the 
5 lower ones do. Its general appearance is very like the 
Smooth White Early Ripe or Rare Ripe (see plate), but it is 
much wider and thicker, without being any longer. It has 
generally a dozen breasts on each side, and (in the specimens 
before me) each breast contains Jive grains, thus making 120 
grains to the head. From its early maturity, appearance and 
quality of the grain, I prefer the name of Smooth Mediter- 
ranean. It was introduced into Preble county twelve years 
ago by C. Wysong; four years ago a Mr. Snyder introduced 
it into Seneca county, and Jacob Roher two years ago into 
Miami county, from Lancaster, Pa. It has also been culti- 
vated two years in Muskingum, Perry and Washington coun- 
ties. The correspondents state that it improves by culture, 
ripens early, generally escapes fly, midge and rust. Mr. D. 
P. Eghert, of Warren county, has furnished the following in 
relation to this wheat: — a It is the most productive; is very 
hardy and adapted to all the different qualities of soil, stands 



528 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

up well on rich soil, is less liable to rust and not often injured 
by the fly. The grain is a better color than that of the beard- 
ed Mediterranean and not unfrequently weighs GG pounds per 
bushel. This variety of wheat was brought from Preble county 
some four years ago. Our informant stated that it was first 
procured by picking a few seeds out of the straw remaining 
in a crate of China ware, imported from England or some 
other foreign port. It is now sown by more than half of the 
farmers in the neighborhood of Lebanon. J. M. Sellers pro- 
duced 45 bushels per acre from this variety, so also have sev- 
eral others. I cheerfully recommend it to farmers as the 
safest variety to cultivate." 

Early York, is cultivated to a slight extent only in Clark 
county; it is subject to all the wheat diseases incident to the 
country ; yields, under favorable circumstances, thirty-six 
bushels per acre — ripens about a week later than the Medi- 
terranean. 

Garden. — This variety was once cultivated to a considerable 
extent in Stark, Wayne, Portage, and other northern counties ; 
but as it ripened very late, it was of course subject to attacks 
from the midge, and was found to deteriorate rapidly. It 
yielded about twenty bushels per acre, under good culture, but 
was unprofitable to the miller , the bran was thick and heavy, 
and the flour full of specks. The head is of medium size, a 
little flattish, dark brown when ripe, and in general appear- 
ance strongly resembles the Kentucky red. There are from 
eight to ten breasts on each side of the head, each breast con- 
taining three grains, terminating with a single grain on each 
side at the apex. 

Golden Straw. — Was introduced into Tuscarawas county 
in 1849, by S. Kuhn, and about the same time by A Standift 
in Mercer county; fifteen years ago it was introduced into 
Lawrence county, by T. Gardner; by Peter Fleck and Hon. 
Thomas W. Chapman into Stark county, in 1854 ; ten years 
ago it was taken to Holmes county, by J. Watts ; and some 
six years ago it found its way into Coshocton county. The 



SMOOTH RED WINTER WHEATS. 529 

straw is short and stiff, and is consequently not liable to lodge ; 
it does best on rich sandy loams ; the grain is not properly a 
red wheat, but an amber colored one, somewhat resembling 
the old-fashioned flint wheats ; in Holmes county it is rather 
of a yellowish cast. It ripens rather later than the Mediter- 
ranean ; yields about twenty bushels per acre ; does not im- 
prove under ordinary culture, and is but little subject to injury 
by rust or fly. It is rapidly growing into favor, and event- 
ually may perhaps supplant the Mediterranean, although it 
has won no advocates in Ross county. The head and straw 
when ripe are of a bright yellow, and not even tinged with 
brown. This year (1859) has produced some samples con- 
taining seventy to seventy-five grains per head. There are 
ten to fourteen breasts on each side, with three grains to the 
breast. 

Kentucky. — See Early Ripe. 

Mediterranean, Maltese, Malta, Smooth or Bald Mediterra- 
nean. — See Dayton. 

May, or Alabama (see Plate). — This variety was introduced 
into Gallia county, twenty years ago, by J. H. and A. S. 
Guthrie, from Virginia ; into Crawford county some ten years 
ago, and into Champaign county two years since, from the 
Shaker settlement. It ripens about the same time the Medi- 
terranean does, but is easily winter-killed, thus betraying its 
southern origin ; yields eighteen to twenty bushels under 
ordinary circumstances ; it comes highly recommended from 
Morgan county. Its general appearance is very like that of 
the White Blue-stem, with this difference, viz. : the head, when 
fully ripe, is a deeper yellow than the Blue-stem ; the stem just 
below the head is a pale greenish-blue. There are from eight 
to twelve breasts on each side, with four grains in a breast. 
Specimens submitted to me for examination have not unfre- 
quently produced eighty grains per head. It produces forty 
pounds of superfine flour per bushel. It was harvested in 
Lawrence county, May 26, 1859. 

Rock, or Club. — Was introduced into Morgan county, by 
45 



530 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

George Newman. It ripens about the fourth of July ; pro- 
duced about 15 bushels per acre; but is no longer cultivated. 

May Wheat, or Watkins. — Is extensively grown in the 
neighborhood of Richmond. It weighs heavy, sixty-four 
pounds to the bushels ; it matures very early, is not liable to 
rust, and is not injured by the fly. In 1842 it was cut as 
early as the 26th of May. It is not remarkable for produc- 
tion, but a very certain crop. It is necessary to seed heavy ; 
does not tiller well, and will not do well on poor land ; it has 
a smooth head,- and makes good flour, and is highly valuable 
to those parts of Maryland which suffer so much by the rava- 
ges of the fly and rust. 

Mountain Sprout. — Has been cultivated during the past ten 
years in Perry county. The berry is light red, and ripens 
about ten days later than the Mediterranean. It has generally 
escaped the fly, rust and midge, when the Virginia Blue-stem 
growing on neighboring fields was almost entirely destroyed. 
Under favorable circumstances it has yielded forty bushels per 
acre. 

Red Chaff. — This is one of the oldest and most substantial 
varieties, and is perhaps one of the earliest varieties cultivated 
in the West. The straw is long, and stands up well, chaff 
slightly brown. It makes a beautiful white flour. It ripens 
about a week later than the Mediterranean ; yields about the 
same as the latter does, but is subject to blight, fly, rust, mil- 
dew, midge, and winter-kill. It has been grown in Hocking 
county during the past several years. Mr. Robert A. Sherrard, 
of Jefferson Co., says : — The Red Chaff Smooth was a variety 
long and successfully cultivated in Eastern Ohio. But it 
gradually depreciated in weight from year to year, until the 
farmers at length 20 years ago quit the use of it entirely, and 
about the same time quit the use of the Red Chaff Beardy. 

Reed Straw— Has been cultivated for the past six years 
in Defiance county. It ripens cotemporaneously with the 
Mediterranean ; is very little subject to disease from any 
cause ; yields about the same as the Mediterranean — is perhaps 



SMOOTH RED WINTER WHEATS. 531 

a sport of the red blue stem. Yields 40 pounds of flour per 
bushel. 

Swamp Creek. — Has been cultivated four years in Preble 
county. 

Sonles Red Chaff.- — Was introduced into the northern part 
of the State several years since, but is now very generally 
superseded by the Mediterranean. 

Tappahannock, is a variety of the Genessee Flint introduced 
into Franklin Co., in 1858, by G. S. Innis, from Virginia — 
it is a hardy variety and yields well. 

Tennessee. — This appears to be a new variety ; it appears to 
be hardy, not subject to attacks of insects or rust, does best 
on thin land, ripens as early as the Mediterranean, yields from 
12 to 30 bushels. It has been cultivated some five years in 
Ross county, where it has made a favorable impression. It is 
possible that Tennessee has been substituted for Genessee, and 
that this variety is after all some one of the New York red 
varieties. This inference is based upon its early ripening. 

Turkey. — Has been cultivated in Muskingum county during 
the past twenty years ; during that period it has deteriorated 
very much; at one time an average yield was 30 bushels per 
acre, but now much less. In consequence of it ripening about 
ten days later than the Mediterranean, it is liable to rust and 
midge. 

Velvet. — Has been cultivated some three years in Muskin- 
gum, and is undoubtedly a sport of some of the old standard 
red varieties from Maryland or Virginia. It is subject to rust 
from its late ripening, being fully ten days later than the 
Mediterranean. It yields about 35 bushels per acre under 
srood culture, and is said to res'st the mid^e. It has been 
cultivated several years in Fayette county, where it is said to 
have deteriorated very much. 

Virginia Blue-stem. — This variety is simply the Red Blue- 
stem acclimated in Virginia, and then transferred to Ohio. 
Beins taken to Virginia from Pennsylvania, and then cul- 
tivated in this State, it has by this change of locality become 



532 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

a later variety, — ripening fully four days later than the Red 
Blue-stem, and from ten to twelve days later than the Mediter- 
ranean. It has been cultivated in Perry county during the 
past five or six years, where it is much subject to fly, rust and 
midge. 

Whig. — See Dayton. 

Wabash. — Was formely cultivated in Montgomery county, 
but was abandoned on account of its susceptibility to disease. 

Watson. — Was introduced into Coshocton county about 
twenty years ago. If sown seasonably it will ripen about the 
fourth of July, but is subject to fly, rust and midge — it is a 
heavy wheat, yields well in flour, and is therefore much ap- 
proved by millers. The red and white Watson were mixed 
when first introduced, and for several years were thus cul- 
tivated until some one hand-separated several sheaves, since 
which time the pure red has been gradually extending in cul- 
tivation and driving out the mixed and white — the latter is no 
longer in cultivation. 

Yellow Fly Root. — This variety was introduced into Stark 
county fifteen years ago, by Hon. Thomas W. Chapman, of 
Navarre, who has assured us that it is not liable to be injured 
by fly, rust or midge ; that under ordinary cultivation it yields 
twenty-five bushels per acre. It ripens rather earlier than 
the Mediterranean. 

Yellow Lamme. — Has been grown in Hocking and Mont- 
gomery counties, but is now abandoned on account of late 
ripening. The berry is yellow. It is a southern variety. 

Yorkshire. — Was introduced by emigrants from England 
some years ago, but it was soon abandoned, both on account 
of its inferiority, and liability to disease. 

Zimmerman. — This variety has been cultivated several years 
in Ross, Darke, and Tuscarawas counties ; it is an amber 
rather than purely red wheat ; ripens a week later than the 
Mediterranean ; improves by culture ; yields 30 bushels per 
acre, and is somewhat subject to fly. Jt succeeds best ou 
good corn ground. The head is short, rather square, 



» 
BEARDED WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 533 

very compact, of a light yellow color when fully ripe. There 
are from eight to twelve breasts on each side of the head, each 
breast containing three grains. These breasts overlie each 
other like shingles on a roof. Several samples, the heads of 
which were two inches long, only contained 60 grains. The 
berry short, amber colored and plump ; neither flinty nor soft ; 
seldom weighs over 60 pounds to the bushel, but yields 40 
pounds of good flour. 

Bearded White Winter Wheats. 

Canada Flint, or, as it is often called, the Cummings wheat, 
from the name of the gentleman who introduced it, is a valu- 
able English variety, that is rapidly taking the place of the 
common Flint wheat, and produces from one fifth to one-third 
more per acre than the old Flint wheat in equally favorable 
circumstances. It is a fine grain, bearded and very hardy ; is 
more liable to shell in harvesting than ordinary wheat, hence 
should be cut earlier. 

Club. — Was formerly cultivated in the northern counties, 
and considered a good variety, but it deteriorated in quality, 
and was so liable to injury from fly, rust and midge, that it is 
now almost entirely abandoned. It ripened almost two weeks 
later than the Mediterranean. A Logan county correspond- 
ent says : " It came highly recommended, but left with a bad 
character." 

Cat Mountain. — This variety was introduced in Richland 
county several years since, by S. H. Tranger. It ripens about 
the 10th of July ; is very liable to be destroyed by weevil ; 
yields under good culture from 16 to 20 bushels per acre, 
and a large quantity of excellent flour. It has been aban- 
doned. 

Genessee. — This name is applied to a red bearded, and a 
white smooth or bald variety, as well as to the white bearded. 
The name properly pertains, we think, to the white smooth 
variety. The variety under consideration was introduced into 
Montgomery county eight years ago, by H. Lewton, It ripens 



534 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

before the Mediterranean, does not suffer from fly, rust, or 
midge, and is said to be very productive. 

Hutcheson. — This variety wa? introduced into Summit county 
three years ago, by Wm. Hutcheson, from Union county, Pa. 
It ripens rather later than the Mediterranean, yields as high 
as 35 bushels per acre. It has not been affected by fly, 
rust, or midge ; has a short stiff straw, and the berry much 
resembles that of the White Blue-stem. It is rapidly 
growing in favor. It yields 40 pounds of good flour per 
bushel. 

Kentucky White Bearded, Canada Flint, Hutchinson. — This 
variety was introduced into Erie county last fall. It is con- 
sidered as less valuable than the White Flint. The bran is 
thicker. It spreads but little, and therefore requires more 
seed. This, however, can not be regarded as an objection to 
the wheat. Its straw is strong; and hence, on rich, loamy 
lands, it will succeed better than those with a weaker straw. 
The straw, too, having more substance, the grain matures or 
fills out after it has been cut. It is early and very pro- 
ductive. 

It has a white chaff; heads short and heavy, well filled ; 
shells readily ; berries round, short, and white ; weighs 60 to 
65 lbs. to the bushel ; flour very good, but not equal to the 
White Flint. It tillers little ; the straw is strong, but liable to 
injury from insects. 

Indiana Wheat. — White chaff, bald; berry white and 
large; bran thin; the berry not as flinty as the White Flint, 
some of the best quality weighing 64 lbs. to the bushel, produ- 
cing flour of superior quality and quantity ; straw is larger and 
longer than the White Flint ; shells easily, so that there is con- 
siderable loss if it remains in the field till fully ripe. Insects 
have attacked it more than the Flint, and it is more liable to 
be winter-killed. 

Mediterranean. — A variety known by this name was intro- 
duced into Darke county three years ago, by Henry Snell, 
and into Holmes county two years since, by Joseph Beam. 



BEARDED WHITE WINTEB WHEATS. 535 

The name is not happily chosen, and there is not much pro- 
priety in naming this a white Mediterranean, except it be 
distinctly shown that it either came from the European 
neighborhood from which the red was originally obtained, or 
else the red was changed into this white — an instance of which 
nearly occurred several years ago on the farm of Hon. A. L. 
Perril, of Lithopolis, Fairfield county. This new variety is 
said to ripen earlier than the rccl } to improve by cultivation, 
and to yield from 20 to 30 bushels under ordinary circum- 
stances, and to be exempt from injuries of the fly, rust or 
midge. 

New York. — Three years ago this variety was introduced 
into Montgomery county, by J. B. White. It is said to ripen 
very early, yields well, and is exempt from the usual diseases 
and injuries. 

Olympia. — This variety was disseminated several years since 
throughout the country by the Patent Office department, if we 
are not mistaken, as having come originally from Abraham's 
farm in Palestine. However excellent it may be in Holy Land, 
it has proved worthless in Ohio ; it is exceedingly long bearded, 
the chaff is black, resists fly and midge, escapes rust, yields 
under good cultivation (G. S. Innis) ten bushels per acre, 
deteriorates rapidly, and ripens nearly three weeks later than 
the Mediterranean. 

Rock. — Was cultivated some time since in Union county ; 
it had a beautiful white berry, but because it ripened late was 
subject both to midge and rust. But the more serious objec- 
tion was, if the season was wet about the time of ripening, a 
great proportion of it was damaged by sprouting. The grain 
protruded through the glumes, and was thus exposed to the 
influences of the weather. 

Rochester. — There is but little doubt that this variety, as 
well as the Genessee and Hutchinson, are the offspring of 
an old variety of " Flinty which years ago was, and perhaps 
is yet, cultivated in the Genessee valley, X. Y. The follow- 
ing description of the original " White. Flinty is applicable 



536 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

to the Genessee and the other varieties above named : — u It is 
of Spanish origin, color white, heads awned, medium length 
and well tilled ; straw white, clear, and strong at the root, by 
which it is prevented from lodging ; kernels very adhesive to 
the stalk. It is cultivated with success on loamy soil, and is 
very susceptible to injury from frost or insects. The kernel 
is very hard, from its silicious cuticle, in consequence of 
which it is less injured by fall rains, and will stand in the 
shock a long time without sprouting." The Rochester has 
been cultivated during the past fifteen years in Trumbull 
county. It ripens cotemporaneously with the Mediterranean, 
and yields full as well. It is more hardy than the old White 
Flint. 

Red Bearded — Red chaif; beards standing out from the 
head ; berry white, weighing from GO to 62 pounds the bushel ; 
yields flour well, and of good quality ; this is a hardy variety ; 
succeeds well after corn, or on light soils; straw not large, or 
very stiff. This variety would be more extensively cultivated 
if its beards were not objectionable. The culture of this vari- 
ety has been abandoned some years. 

Turkish White Flint. — Two years ago D. McMillen, Jr., of 
(xreene county, received a package of this variety from the 
Patent Office. It ripens as early as the- Mediterranean ; not 
affected by fly, rust, or midge ; improves by culture. The 
beard is long and large, and the straw firm ; the chaff is pur- 
plish ; the grain very hard, and rather difficult to be separated 
from the chaff. 

Velvet. — Was introduced into Butler county, two years ago, 
by Stephen Clawson ; it ripens rather earlier than the Medi- 
terranean, is vigorous and healthy, appears to withstand 
attacks from insects and the severity of the winter, escapes 
the rust, and yields about 20 bushels under ordinary culture. 

Velvet Clmf. — Was abandoned in Franklin county ten or 
twelve years ago. It yielded, under good culture, 40 bushels 
per acre, but deteriorated ; it was very liable to injury from 
insects, smut, and rust. 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 537 

White, White Chaff, and White Bearded, appear to be syn- 
onymous. It has been cultivated during the past 30 years in 
Portage county, in Stark, Wayne, Columbiana, Carroll, and 
about 25 years ago J. Newhouse introduced it into Holmes 
county; in the above named counties it is known as " White 
Beardy," in Butler county, where it has been cultivated during 
the last 12 years, and in Darke 10 years, it is known as " White 
Chaffs It improves by cultivation, yields under ordinary cir- 
cumstances about 20 bushels per acre. In the northern por- 
tion of the State it ripens later than the Mediterranean, but 
in the southern counties earlier. In the north it is subject to 
injury from the fly, but resists it in the south. 

White Flint, was cultivated some years since in Geauga Co., 
but deteriorated in quality, diminished in quantity, and 
ripened the latter part of July ; it is now generally abandoned. 

White Flint. — This is one of the most valuable kinds in 
the northern States. The heads are not long but well filled, 
with 30 to 40 grains ; the kernel is white and flinty, large, 
and with thin bran. They are firmly attached to the chaff, 
and do not shell out, except when very ripe. The heads are 
rather drooping, with but few awns, the straw medium length, 
and very white and strong. The flour is very superior ; the 
perfect wheat weighs from 63 to 67 pounds the bushels. 

White Flint, Hannons. — A variety improved from the 
above, in which the berry is larger, bran very thin, and the 
flour equally good, if not superior; weighs 64 pounds to the 
bushel. This and the above are little injured by the Hessian 
fly, and will stand a good deal of wet weather without injury. 
From New York State — not much cultivated. 

Smooth White Winter Wheats. 

Alahama, White M<nj (Plate I., No. 2). — This variety has a 
white chaff, the heads somewhat heavier than the White Flint. 
For the beautiful and large proportion of superfine flour to the 
quantity of grain, the White May is unequaled ; but for late 
sowing on unfavorable soil, it is not as valuable as the Flint; 



538 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

it will do well sown any time in October, or on very rich land 
in November, and answers as a spring wheat sown in February 
or March. 

It has been cultivated in Clermont county, during the past 
fifteen years. As it ripens very early it is not much subject 
to rust or injury from the midge, but is attacked by the fly. 
It is said to deteriorate. It has been cultivated some three 
years in Franklin county, but does not appear to be received 
with much favor. One year ago Stephen Clawson introduced 
it into Butler county. It is cultivated in Warren county, 
where it is in great favor, said to be fly-proof, but liable to 
winter-kill — best adapted to light soil. 

Blue Stem (Plate). — The Blue Stem was introduced into 
Jefferson county, in the fall of 1804, by Wm. Sharron, near 
Smithfield, and for the last 30 years thought to be the most 
profitable variety now in use in Jefferson county. This vari- 
ety holds much the same relation (so far as popularity is con- 
cerned) to the white wheats, that the Mediterranean does to 
the red. It is more generally cultivated than any other white 
wheat, there being scarcely a county in which it was not in- 
troduced, under some name or other. There is no doubt 
that this variety is the offspring of u Flint" wheat, modi- 
fied and improved perhaps, by climate, soil, and culture, 
and known throughout the State by the various names of 
" Flint," " New York Flint,''-" Genessee," \\ Burst," etc. The 
parent variety is evidently of northern origin, but that intro- 
duced into the State is from various sources, as Pennsylvania, 
Marj^and, Virginia, Kentucky, and New York. That intro- 
duced into Washington county 14 years ago by Br. Johnson, 
from the Patent Office ; into Summit 10 years ago by Wm. 
Lemmon and Wm. L. Palmer; into Clermont county 14 years 
ago by Wm. Sargent; into Muskingum 8 years ago; into 
Monroe 10 years ago by Alex. Sinclair; into Mercer 10 years 
ago by R. W. Steans ; into Preble 5 years ago by J. Patter- 
son, from the north, and has never been acclimated south of 
the Ohio river; but that introduced into Summit by J. Philip 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 539 

8 years ago ; into Holmes 10 years ago by A. Bell ; into Mor- 
row 15 years ago by A. Nevis ; into Ross 10 years ago by 
Wm. Betts, are of the eastern acclimated variety ; while that 
in the other portions of the State may with safety be regarded 
as of that variety which had been acclimated in the South. 
These conclusions are based upon the following premises : 
that that in those counties first named, or of northern origin, 
ripens at the same time the Mediterranean does in the respec- 
tive counties, and improves in quality, and but little subject 
to injuries by insects or rust; the second named, or of the 
Pennsylvania acclimatization, invariably ripens fully a week 
later than the Mediterranean, and improves by cultivation. 
That regarded as of southern acclimatization, ripened about 
ten days later, was very sensitive to cold, much subject to dis- 
ease, and deteriorated so rapidly that, in Montgomery, Logan, 
Licking, Crawford, Erie, Franklin, and Hocking, and many 
other counties, it was entirely abandoned. The correspond- 
ents from Washington, Tuscarawas, Trumbull and Ross, and 
some other counties, say it is the best variety of white wheat, 
all things considered, that they ever have had. Fifteen coun- 
ties report it as yielding, under good culture, 40 bushels per 
acre. Mr. R. H. Rogers, of Venice Mills, Erie county, says : 
"I have known a field of 40 acres produce 40 bushels per 
acre." Twenty counties report 30 bushels as the yield under 
ordinary circumstances, while twenty-five counties report 20 
to 25 bushels as the average product. 

The engraving is a good representation of an average-sized 
head. The straw is tall but stands well, and near the head 
when ripe, is blue — hence the name u blue stem.' 1 The flour is 
of the very best quality. This variety always commands from 
10 to 15 cents per bushel more than the Mediterranean. It 
has a white chaff; berry white; weighs sixty-four pounds to 
the bushel ; bran thin, produces flour of a superior quality. 
Formerly, this was a red wheat ; now it is changed to a beauti- 
ful white. There are from 10 to 15 breasts on each side of 
the head, and each breast contains four grains in good seasons, 



540 ' THE WHEAT PLANT. 

generally three grains only. It is now one of the most pro- 
ductive varieties cultivated in Virginia. 

Boone. — Was introduced into Muskingum county about ten 
years ago by Wm. Boone, from Pennsylvania. It yields, under 
good culture, 30 bushels per acre, resists the attacks of fly and 
midge, escapes the rust, and is improving in quality. It ripens 
at the same time that the Mediterranean does. 

Bull. — Mr. Fowler introduced this variety into Licking 
county as early as 1825, whence it found its way into Muskin- 
gum county; and thirty years ago Geo. Newman introduced it 
into Morgan county. In these counties it ripened from the 
6th to 10th of July ; and, notwithstanding it had a large straw, 
long head, and yielded well, it was abandoned, on account of its 
liability to rust and the fly. It is nowhere cultivated at present. 

Club (Plate). — This variety was one among the earliest culti- 
vated in the northern portion of the State, where it was in- 
troduced thirty years ago ; the farmers in Carroll, Stark, 
Columbiana, and Mahoning, have grown it more or less during 
the past twenty-five years ; and emigrants from these counties 
have introduced it into the western and north-western coun- 
ties, but it is being superseded by less precarious varieties. It 
yields about 18 bushels per acre, under ordinary culture, 
ripens from ten days to two weeks after the Mediterranean. 
The berry has a thin skin, makes excellent flour, but the plant 
is very susceptible to injury from the fly, winter-kill, and 
midge. A bushel yields 40 pounds of excellent flour. The 
engraving represents ahead grown in Franklin count}'' (June, 
1858), under very favorable circumstances; this is proof (if 
any is required) that it possesses considerable " constitution." 
Canada Flint, York Flint, and White Genessee (Plate), 
are sub-varieties of the old white flint. Canada flint was in- 
troduced into Adams county, by J. W. Adams, four years 
ago ; it yields, under good culture, 40 bushels per acre ; is 
not liable to injury from fly or rust ; improves by culture, and 
ripens a few days after the Mediterranean. It is also culti- 
vated in Preble county. 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. ' 541 

Cuyahoga. — Introduced into Greene county by D. McMil- 
len, Jr. It, in all probability, is a sub-variety of the Flint. 
It yields about 20 bushels per acre, is slightly liable to dis- 
ease, improves by cultivation, weighs well, has a white chaff, 
and ripens at the same time that the Mediterranean does. 

Calb. — In 1845 Mr. Henry Calb, of Putnam county, no- 
ticed a few heads of a distinct variety of wheat in a field of 
red chaff. These heads were saved and sowed separately. 
The wheat proved to be a very desirable variety both for qual- 
ity and quantity, making the best flour in the neighborhood 
and yielding for a number of years 28 bushels per acre. At 
first it successfully resisted fly, winter-kill, midge, and rust, 
but now is subject to all those evils. It is also deteriorating. 
It ripens a week later than the Mediterranean. Yields 45 
pounds of flour per bushel. 

China. — Was introduced into Defiance county from the Pat- 
ent Office, eight years ago ; it yielded a fair quantity of good 
quality flour. Fly, midge, rust, climate, soil, and culture, 
appear to affect it less than white wheats generally — it has 
yielded 30 bushels per acre, and ripens a week later than the 
Mediterranean. 

Congress or Rock (Plate), was originally a flinty variety, 
whence came the name "Rock" (if our information is reli- 
able). Ten years ago A. S. Guthrie introduced this variety 
into Gallia county from Virginia. Dr. Edwards, a member of 
Congress from Ohio, introduced it among his constituency and 
and acquaintances in Ohio (whence it has been called Con- 
gress Wheat). It is grown in Lawrence county, where 
Thomas Gardner introduced it six years ago, and who fur- 
nished the head from which the engraving is made ; in Butler 
county by Benjamin Symmes, five years ago ; in Fairfield by 
M. Landis, six years ago. It improves by culture ; is very 
little subject to disease ; yields about 25 bushels per acre, and 
ripens cotemporaneously with the Mediterranean. 

Dutch. — A variety bearing this cognomen was introduced in 
Licking county in 1834 by Mr. Bodle. It yields from 20 to 



542 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

30 bushels per acre — ripens about the 10th of July ; but it 
deteriorates so rapidly, that in a short time it was entirely 
abandoned. 

Early Ripe or Rare Ripe (Plate). — This is a new variety 
just introduced into Stark county by Harris Baynolds, Esq., 
of Canton, who sent the head from which the engraving was 
made. Joseph Mosher of Mt. Gilead, Morrow county, has 
also just introduced it. From the appearance of the head one 
might be led to suppose that it was a hybrid produced by the 
Club crossed upon the Blue-stem. It has a beautifully plump, 
thin-skinned berry, which yields an excellent quality of flour. 
It ripens several days before the Mediterranean, consequently 
it escapes the rust, and is not affected by the midge. 

The head is of medium length ; the breasts at the apex, are 
very compact, while those at the base are very loose and 
straggling, so that it is somewhat club shaped. There are 8 to 
12 breasts on each side, each breast containing 4 grains. Its 
external appearance is precisely like that of the " Dayton" 
" Whig" or " Smooth Mediterranean" with this exception, 
that the latter is wider and deeper in proportion to the length 
than this variety. The former have 5 grains in each breast, 
while this does not exceed four. 

Flint, Old White Flint, Bull Wheat (Plate). — Appears to 
have had three distinct origins, so far as Ohio is concerned, 
viz. : in Trumbull and other north-eastern counties it was in- 
troduced from N. Y. State some fifteen years ago — there it 
ripens with the Mediterranean ; is not much subject to disease, 
and is considered a good variety. In Stark, Harrison, etc., it 
was introduced as much as 30 years ago from Pennsylvania, 
and is now almost literally " run out." But in Franklin and 
other more southern counties it was introduced from Kentucky ; 
ripened about the 25th of July, and was in consequence, soon 
abandoned entirely. Ten years ago Samuel Cole introduced 
it into Darke county, where it is doing well ; at the same time 
it was introduced into Tuscarawas. This flint is of Spanish 
origin. The head is of medium length and well filled — straw 



SMOOTH WiiiTi; WINTER WHEATS. 548 

white, clear and strong at the root, by which it is prevented 
from lodging; spikelets very adhesive to the rachis, and ker- 
nels very adhesive to the glumes. It succeeds best on loamy 
soils and is rather susceptible to injury from frosts and insects. 
The berry is very hard from its silicious cuticle (hence its 
name), in consequence of which it is less injured by fall rains, 
and will stand in the shock a long time without sprouting. 

Genessee, Genessee Flint, Genessee White Flint (Plate). — 
Perhaps the first of this variety introduced into Ohio was in 
Warren county, by Thomas Ireland, in 1842. From there it 
no doubt spread through the valleys of the Miami ; in many 
of which it forms the main crop of white wheats. It is best 
adapted to high and gravelly lands, and rarely if ever succeeds 
on a bottom soil. In Franklin county it is regarded as a 
much surer crop than when first introduced eight years ago. 
It ripens about a week later than the Mediterranean and ap- 
pears to be less liable to disease than white wheats generally. 
It is a very fine grained wheat, and yields more flour to the 
bushel than any other variety. It frequently has yielded 40 
bushels per acre. 

Mr. I). P. Egbert of Warren county, says : " Four years 
ago I procured several bushels of this variety from Michigan 
and sowed by the side of some of the same variety, which I 
had been cultivating for several years, and found that the 
Michigan had much the finest head and yielded from 3 to 5 
bushels more to the acre than that which I had formerly raised. 
I can account for the change only by supposing that this is a 
more congenial climate for it than Michigan." 

Mr. David Jones writes, " It yields 44 pounds of flour to 
the bushel, but does not contain the strength and moisture of 
some other varieties. It is not so good as the Mediterranean 
for family use; but if ground separately and then bolted with 
the Mediterranean, it improves the quality of both for family 
use." There are 10 to 12 breasts on each side of the head, 
each breast containing four grains. 

Golden Stem or Indiana. — Was introduced from Indiana ; 



544 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

has a large white kernel; cuticle thin; weight per bushel 
sometimes 64 pounds. It ripens a few days later than the 
Mediterranean, but it shells out easily when ripe. It has 
yielded 33 bushels to the acre, but is not adapted to strong- 
soils. It is more liable to sprout in the stack than any other 
kind. It was introduced into Pike township. Stark county, 
some six years ago. Ten years ago it was introduced into 
Guernsey county. Mr. C, P. B. Sarchet says : " The Golden 
Stem and Mediterranean are principally raised in this county, 
and are regarded the most certain. The Golden Stem does 
not grow so tall nor is the stalk as stiff as the Mediterranean 
— it is liable to drift and fall when raised on very rich soil. 
It weighs 60 pounds per bushel, and in this market commands 
from 5 to 10 cents more per bushel than other varieties." 

Golden Chaff, is perhaps a synonym of Shot, and is prob- 
ably a sub-variety of Soule's ; was introduced some fifteen 
years ago into Ross county. It ripens about a week earlier 
than the Mediterranean. Gen. Worthington says it is the 
earliest variety of wheat grown in the county, consequently it 
escapes rust, midge, etc. It yields from 8 to 16 bushels, of a 
small round berry, per acre ; it is not much cultivated. 

Golden Strata, Whig, River Bottom. — Was introduced three 
years ago into Stark county, by J. Fleck ; four years ago into 
Morrow county by D. C. Bingham, of Mt. Gilead. Joseph 
Mosher, of Mt. Gilead, says that it is an early variety, is not 
liable to disease; improves by cultivation, and yields from 
20 to 40 bushels per acre. It is in all probability a sub- 
variety of the " Flint " family. Mr. Fleck says it is very 
liable to disease. 

Garden. — Was very extensively grown some 12 or 15 years 
ago, in Stark, Columbiana, Summit, and Mahoning counties ; 
but is being superseded by more reliable varieties. It 
ripened early in July, was rather liable to disease. Twenty- 
five bushels per acre is the highest yield of which any account 
has been returned to this office. It is yet cultivated in Trum- 
bull county. There is a red wheat known by this name also. 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 545 

German. — Was introduced into Hocking county some time 
since, but it does not come well recommended. 

Gander. — Has been cultivated in Muskingum county during 
the past 12 years. It ripens extemporaneously with the 
Mediterranean ; is not affected by the fly, rust, or midge ; 
improves by culture, and has been known to yield thirty-five 
bushels per acre. 

Hoover. — This variety originated in Stark county, on the 
farm of J. B. Hoover, and is a sub-variety of the Blue-stem. 
It ripens a few days later than the Mediterranean. Is liable 
to injury from fly, but yields about 20 bushels per acre. 

Indiaria. — See Golden Stem. 

June. — The May wheat is known by this name in Huron 
county. 

Lambert (Plate). — In 1849, Isaac Lambert, of Harding 
county, found three heads of smooth wheat, uninjured by rust 
or midge, in a field of Old Red Chaff bearded, which was 
seriously injured by both the above maladies. From these 
three heads have sprung the famous crops of Lambert wheat 
in that region. It ripens earlier than the Mediterranean. 
The glumes appear to have a large amount of silica in their 
composition, which is perhaps one reason that it is regarded 
as proof against the midge, by which, thus far, it has not 
been affected. It has yielded 20 bushels per acre. The berry 
is small and opaquely white. Were it not for the fact that it 
is regarded as proof against the midge, almost every one 
would prefer, both for quality and yield, the White Blue- 
stem, to which variety it undoubtedly owes its parentage, and 
which it very strongly resembles in its general appearance, as 
well as in its anatomical details. 

Michigan. — Is a sub -variety of the Genessee Flint, intro- 
duced into Franklin county some twelve years ago, but was 
soon abandoned. It is also abandoned in Montgomery 
county, where it was cultivated several years since. 

Malta, or White Smooth Mediterranean. — Has been intro- 
duced into several counties in the State, as Franklin, Wash- 
46 



546 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ington, etc., some two years since. It is not Teally a white 
wheat, but properly belongs to a class which we have not 
made, namely, " amber colored wheats." It ripens at the same 
time that the red Mediterranean does, and like almost all 
white wheats, appears to be liable to disease. It yields, under 
ordinary circumstances, 20 bushels per acre ; but is thought 
to be rather too thick skinned to prove profitable for flour. 
Mr. Arnold, of Darke county, thinks it is a better wheat, in 
every respect, than the red bearded Mediterranean. 

May (Plate). — During the past ten years it has been culti- 
vated in Butler, Warren, and Clinton counties. It ripens 
several days earlier than the Mediterranean ; has a very fine 
grain, and has been known to yield 45 bushels per acre on 
first-class soil. Although it is considered fly-proof, it is very 
liable to injury from late frosts, and is upon the whole best 
adapted to light soils. Mr. Egbert states that the wheat 
weighs from 64 to 67 pounds. 

Orange: — Introduced four years ago into Seneca county ; 
ripens four or five days earlier than the Mediterranean, conse- 
quently escapes the effects of rust and the ravages of the 
mid°e ; improves by culture, and has yielded as high as 30 
bushels per acre. 

Purkey. — So far as the history of this wheat is concerned, 
I can do no better than to give the annexed letter entire, 
from Mr. Freeman Gr. Carey, one of the Professors in Farmers' 
College, near Cincinnati: 

u Its history is as follows : It was obtained from England 
about ten years since, and brought into our neighborhood by 
Judge Moore, of Cheviot, Hamilton county; through him 
disseminated through that immediate neighborhood. I ob- 
tained it of him through Mr. Wardell, of that place, who had 
been raising it with success upon a thin soil for several years 
before he introduced it to my notice. He gave it the name 
of the ' Purkey ' wheat. On sending some of it to Mr. Brown, 
of the Patent Office, he gave me as the more probable name 
the ' White Pirk,' as he said there was no such name as ' Pur- 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 



547 



key ' wheat, and it answered to the de- 
scription of the name as above cor- 
rected. 

Query. — What authorities did Mr. I). 
J. Browne consult? Where did he find 
a description of the " Pirk" wheat? 
If Mr. Browne had consulted Yale's 
" Gentleman s Companion in the business 
and pleasures of a country life" written 
about two hundred years ago in Eng- 
land — the copy I have was printed in 
1716 — he would have found the follow- 
ing passage : " We find many sorts of 
wheat mentioned in our Rustick authors ; 
as, Whole Straw icheat, Reel Straw wheat, 
Rivet wheat, white and red, Pollard 
wheat, white and red, great and small ; 
Turkey wheat, Pur key icheat, Grey wheat, 
Flaxen icheat, I suppose the same in 
some places is called Lammas wheat, 
Chiliern, Ograve, etc. [This is proof 
positive that there is such a name as 
" Purkey" — Klippart.^ 

'• Its constitution is unmistakably 
good, growing most vigorously even 
upon thin soils, and withstanding the 
effects of cold and drouth better than 
any other variety wherever tried. It 
has been known to yield 50 bushels to 
the acre, and has from 50 to 80, and 
even over that number of grains to 
the head. It will yield from 5 to 10 
bushels to the acre more than the Medi- 
terranean, sowed side by side. It has 






Pcjrkey Wheat. 



548 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

weighed 72 lbs. to the measured bushel, and never falls below 
standard. Its chaff is light ; kernels compact on the rachis ; the 
head short, bald ; the straw white and strong, often a little 
purple or inclining to red a few inches below the head — quite 
a characteristic mark ; not liable to fall, as is the Mediter- 
ranean, and is well suited to rich or lean soils. It has been 
known to yield 44 lbs. of flour to the standard bushel ; and is 
a premium flour in appearance as well as in fact, having a 
rich cream-like color, and will ordinarily bring 50 cents per 
barrel more than any flour in the market. 

c< Another desirable quality in this latitude is that it ripens 
early, about the time of the Blue Stem, and a little in advance 
of the White Genessee of New York. We have never anal- 
yzed it in any other way than at the table, where its merits 
are often discussed with a good relish." 

The engraving represents the natural size of a head of 
this variety now in the State Agricultural Rooms, Columbus, 
Ohio. It was obtained from Hon. Mr. Seney, Representative 
in the last Legislature, from Ross county. He obtained it 
from a gentleman who brought it from England. It is des- 
tined to become one of the most popular white wheats in Ohio. 

River Bottom. — See Golden Straw. 

River Rhine. — Was introduced about the year 1845 into 
Tuscarawas county, but as it ripened late it was liable to all 
the ills to which wheat is subject, and the culture of it is now 
abandoned. 

Shot (see Golden Ghaft"). — The wheat, as well as the de- 
scription, is so much like the Grolden Chaff, that for all prac- 
tical purposes it may be regarded as a synonym only. 

Soule's (see Plate). — This wheat has been cultivated during 
the past fifteen years, chiefly in the northern and central coun- 
ties. When first introduced into Stark county, fifteen years 
ago, the straw was short and very stiff, but now it has a much 
longer straw ; correspondents from Trumbull, Tuscarawas, 
Summit, Wayne and Holmes say it is not as reliable as the 



SMOOTH WHITE WINTER WHEATS. 548 

White Blue-stem. In Ross it Las been abandoned on ac- 
count of its liability to rust; in Greene they complain that it 
has too soft a grain ; but in Sandusky, Williams, and other 
western counties, it is very popular. In Stark it has produced 
better average crops than any other variety, but is now de- 
teriorating. It ripens nearly a week later than the Mediter- 
ranean, and appears to be more able to resist fly and midge in 
some localities than in others. The Summit and Holmes 
county millers praise the excellent quality of its flour. It 
yields from 15 to 40 bushels of a very large sized wheat per 
acre. Some writers regard this variety as a hybrid between 
the Old Red Chaff and White Chaff, bald. Yields 42 pounds 
of flour per bushel. 

Siberian. — Fifteen years ago, Benjamin Travis introduced 
this variety into Defiance Co. It did well for several years, 
yielded some 35 bushels per acre. It deteriorated rather 
rapidly ; it ripens fully a week later than the Mediterranean, 
and is consequently liable to rust, and midge. 

Texian. — This variety was introduced by C. Lets, Esq., and 
has been cultivated some three years in Knox Co.; it yields 25 
bushels per acre under ordinary circumstances ; is said to be 
fly-proof, but yields to rust. It ripens some days after the 
Mediterranean. 

Turkey. — Is a wheat introduced by the Patent Office, and is 
met with in various parts of the State. It appears to have 
succeeded best in Stark Co., where it has been cultivated 
during the past six years. It ripens rather later than the 
Mediterranean ; is not liable to fly, winter kill, rust, or midge ; 
so far as change in form or quality are concerned, nothing 
perceptible has yet taken place. It yields (in Stark) an aver- 
age crop of 20 bushels of excellent wheat per acre. 

Virginia. — Was introduced many years ago into Montgom- 
ery Co., but is now entirely abandoned. 

Wabash. — See Golden Stem. 

White Mount. — Has been cultivated during the past six 
years in Meigs Co. It yields an average crop of 18 bushels, 



550 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

ripens later than the Mediterranean, and is liable to be attacked 
by rust. 

White Napoleon. — Has been cultivated for some time in 
Darke Co., where it seems to yield a heavier crop than either 
the White Flint, Genessee, Blue-stem or Mediterranean. It 
is said to be nearly fly and rust proof, and ripens a few days 
after the Mediterranean. 

White Provence. — Heads middling bluish; berry large and 
white ; bran thin, and flour good; it is early, but the straw is 
small, long, and soft, and very liable to fall. 

White May, Virginia. — It has a white chaff, bald, much 
resembling the White Flint in its growth and straw ; the heads 
are more clumped ; the berry stands out more, and shells 
easier. The berry is white, with a very hard and flinty ap- 
pearance, weighing from 63 to 66 pounds to the bushel ; bran 
of a medium thickness, producing flour of a good quality. Its 
early maturity makes it valuable. 

White Flint (see Flint), sometimes called Pennsylvania 
White. — There is grown in many counties a wheat which is 
described simply as a " white, smooth wheat." It has a stiff 
straw, stands well, escapes the fly and midge, and appears to 
be almost rust proof, but it is exceedingly liable to smut. Mr. 
Higgins introduced it into Highland Co. seven years ago, and 
about the same time, or a year later, we find it in Washington 
county. If sown early it improves ; ripens rather later than 
the Mediterranean, and yields from 18 to 35 bushels per acre. 
The head is rather compact, the breasts overlap each other 
somewhat ; there are from 10 to 12 breasts on each side of the 
head, of which five or six breasts on the lower part, each con- 
tain four nice, plump, thin-skinned, and rather transparent 
berries, while the upper breasts have three grains only. 

Wild Goose has been cultivated in Union county, but has 
failed to be deemed worthy of cultivation ; it is an exceed- 
ingly late variety, and has nothing to recommend it. It is 
supposed that the seeds were dropped by wild geese in their 
annual migration to and from the "far north." 



SPRING WHEATS. 551 

Old Red Chaff. — This variety has been cultivated in Huron 
county during the past 30 years. It is an old and favorite 
kind, but now liable to rust and the fly. It has a red chaff, 
the straw is long, the berry white, large, and plump. It 
weighs 62 pounds to the bushel, has a thin bran, and makes 
superior flour. 

White Soft Wheat. — This was introduced one year ago in 
Putnam county by Geo. Skinner. The straw is long and 
strong ; heads long and tapering, the breasts are so loosely 
arranged that they do not overlap each other ; there are from 
6 to 10 breasts on each side, each breast (except the upper 
two or three) has two short, ovate, plump, white berries. The 
upper breasts have one berry only. It ripens at the same time 
the Mediterranean does, and yields at the rate of twenty-two 
bushels for every one sown. Mr. Skinner thinks this variety 
a valuable one. 

Weevil Proof. — At least half a dozen different varieties of 
Bearded Red, Smooth Red, Bearded and Smooth White, are 
claimed to be weevil proof. The notorious Weevil Proof dis- 
tributed by Hon. S. S. Cox, through Franklin, Licking, and 
Pickaway counties is a red flint wheat. 

Spring Wheats. 
To convert winter intc spring wheat, nothing more is neces- 
sary than that the winter wheat should be allowed to germi- 
nate slightly in the fall or winter, but kept from vegetation by 
a low temperature or freezing, until it can be sown in the 
spring. This is usually done by soaking and sprouting the 
seed, and freezing it while in this state and keeping it frozen 
until the season for spring sowing has arrived. Only two 
things seem requisite, germination and freezing. It is prob- 
able, that winter wheat sown in the fall, so late as only to ger- 
minate in the earth, without coming up, would produce a 
grain which would be a spring wheat if sown in April instead 
of September. The experiment of converting winter wheat 
into spring wheat, has met with great success. It retains 



552 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

many of its primitive winter wheat qualities, and is inferior in 
no respect to the best varieties of spring wheat, and produces 
at the rate of 28 bushels per acre. 

Grain which ripens in cold weather, late in August or Sep- 
tember, will be heavier ordinarily than that which is hastened 
to maturity in hot weather. By grain is meant spring wheat. 
From this it might be inferred that spring wheat should be 
sowed late, without reference to the grain worm ; and yet 
before the appearance of that insect, it was found that early 
sown wheat was ordinarily the best. This may be remedied, 
and late sown wheat rendered a certain and uniform crop. 
When the wheat grows rapidly with a large straw and broad 
leaf of a peculiar deep green color, having the appearance of 
that which grows about burnt places, the straw will rust, and 
the grain blast. Grain sown the 1st of May or June will be 
more luxuriant, with a greater growth of stalks and straw 
than when planted early. It follows, therefore, that so long 
as spring wheat is obliged to be sown late to avoid the grain 
worm, there is more certainty of a crop to sow it on medium 
soil which will yield from 15 to 18 bushels per acre, than to 
sow it on very rich land. 

The best method of improving the varieties of wheat, will 
be by selecting one or more heads that combine the greatest 
number of desirable qualities as regards the berry, flour, 
length and shape of ear, quality and stiffness of straw, hardi- 
hood and liability to disease, and cultivating from these alone. 

The average of the wheat crop of England per acre has 
been estimated at 36 bushels. In the United States the aver- 
age would range between 12 and 15 bushels per acre. Fields 
of fifty bushels per acre are as common there as 35 are here ; 
climate may have some influence in this great productiveness, 
but skillful farming more. In a large part of England, the 
soil on farms constantly cultivated has for many years been 
increasing in fertility, and the idea of exhaustion of soils, 
under proper cultivation, is scouted as absurd. 

A superior variety of spring wheat, is the China or Black 



SPRING WHEATS. 553 

Tea Wheat, and by some this is called Saltarian Wheat. The 
origin of this beautiful wheat is this : Some twelve years 
since, there was found by a merchant in Petersburg, Rensse- 
laer county, New York, 6 or 7 kernels of this kind of wheat 
in a chest of black tea, which was sown. It now has the pre- 
ference of all the different varieties of spring wheat. The 
straw is very stiff and has never been known to rust. It 
threshes very easily. It should be cut rather early as it is 
liable to shell if left till fully ripe. The quality of the flour 
is equal to any other spring wheat. It is said to yield from 
15 to 40 bushels per acre. 

Hungarian Spring Wheat, from the Patent Office, is in all 
probability a winter wheat. 

Bald Spring Wheat. — First brought from Lord Selkirk's 
settlements on North Red River, and introduced by James Gr. 
Soulard. This wheat when sowed on the 15th of May, came 
to maturity perfectly without smut or rust, producing at the 
rate of 30 bushels to the acre. 

Tea Wheat or Siberian Bald. — As far as flouring is con- 
cerned, a correspondent says : " I can speak from experience, 
and say the true Tea Wheat is A. No. 1. It can't be beat by 
any spring wheat that I ever ground, for quality and quantity. 
Black Sea Wheat is the poorest flouring kind that has come 
under my observation ; the berry is hard, and flours a little 
better than Canada Corn. It bears no comparison with Tea 
Wheat for flouring." 

Black Sea Wheat. — The grain is not as light colored as 
other varieties, but the berry is always plump ; the quality of 
flour is more harsh, and not as white. Its recommendation is 
that it invariably yields a good return, from 20 to 40 bushels 
to the acre, and is not subject to the rust. 

Whitington Wheat. — This is a very beautiful spring wheat. 
The berry is large, plump, and very white, the skin apparently 
thin, the head seven inches long, and the straw stout and 
bright. The origin of this wheat was three ears selected from 
a field on the mountains of Switzerland. It obtained a medal 



4 



554 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

at the Liverpool Agricultural Meeting, in 1836. It is said 
that it grows upon poor soils, and that 12 bushels sown have 
produced 300. 

Canada Club and Fife. — Canada Club is beardless, white 
chaff, fine white berry. Straw stiff, hard and wiry — more so 
than any other spring wheat. It has been supposed that the 
Canada Club and " Fife " are the same variety. A gentleman 
residing in Canada, where the latter was first introduced, says : 
" They are decidedly distinct varieties. If sown in the same 
field on the same day, the Club will ripen a week earlier than 
the Fife, and the latter will grow and mature well in low, 
moist, rich soils (nearly swampy), while the former, if sown 
in such soils, seldom or never does any good. Hence our 
farmers sow Fife on their lowlands, and Club on the high and 
dry. There is also a marked difference in the appearance of 
the straw while growing, the Club having the usual straw 
green shade, while the other has a distinct bluish bloom upon 
it. The kernel or berry is much the same in size and general 
appearance in both varieties. The main difference consists in 
the Fife being lighter colored. There is also a considerable 
difference in the appearance of the heads — the kernels on the 
Club are closer or more compact than in the Fife. In hight 
they are nearly alike — both are heavy in the bushel, frequently 
going up to 65 lbs. The straw in both sorts is of medium 
length, but that of the Fife is much the stiffest; hence, it sel- 
dom lodges, although sown on heavy, moist soil. It has never 
been known to rust, which is not the case with the Club. Both 
descriptions yield well ; on suitable, well-tilled land, 30 to 
35 bushels per acre are common crops, and much more fre- 
quently obtained. The general impression is, that all things 
being equal, the Fife yields the best. I can not say where 
the Club came from, but the history of the Fife is well known. 
The person who introduced it lives only a short distance from 
me. While on his way to this country a few years ago, Mr. 
Fife obtained about a peck of wheat from a Russian vessel 
unloading at Glasgow- -hence the name ' Fife ' and Scotch, 



SPRING WHEATS. 555 

From this small beginning it has spread until each year wit- 
nesses the growing of millions of bushels of it. It has been 
a favorite from the start, and it does not seem likely soon to 
lose its good character. From one and a half to two and a 
half bushels per acre is the quantity sown — the latter quantity 
when the soil is very strong, and when the seed is sown 
broadcast — the former when the drill is used. Before con- 
cluding, permit me to say that you may hear of a new variety 
of Canadian spring wheat, under the name of ' Swamp Wheat.' 
I do not know it for a fact, but I guess it is only some of our 
' Fife ' wheat taken from home and baptized afresh." 

Rock. — This is of Spanish origin. It has been cultivated 
in this country about forty years. It is not a fine, but is a 
successful variety. 

Red Bearded. — This succeeds on stiff, clayey soils. The 
beard stands out from the head ; reddish chaff, white berry, 
and yielding good flour. 

Italian Spring. — This was much prized when first intro- 
duced, some twelve or fourteen years ago, but it has rapidly 
run out, and is much neglected. 

Talarera. — Without beard; chaff white; long, stiff straw; 
head large and plump. This kind is subject to the attack of 
the fly, and is not sufficiently hardy to stand severe winters. 

Hedgerow. — This variety has been somewhat cultivated. Of 
its origin, or whether it is elsewhere known by other names, I 
am not informed. Of late years its cultivation has been en- 
tirely neglected, in consequence of its liability to rot. In the 
West it has not suffered to so great an extent. It is distin- 
guished by its short heads, which are filled out in such a man- 
ner as to give them a rectangular form. It is bearded; white 
chaff; bright, strong straw ; round plump berry. 

Poland White- Brardfd. — A variety which some years since 
was in very great favor, but at present very little if any spring 
wheat of any variety is cultivated. If Ohio can not produce 
good winter wheat, it certainly is folly in any other State to 
attempt it. 



556 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Spring Club was introduced into northern Ohio many years 
ago, but made no favorable impression on agriculturists or 
millers. 

Indian Wheat — its Value and Culture. — I notice an inquiry 
in the Country Gentleman, in regard to " Indian Wheat." 
This grain was introduced into this town about twenty-three 
years ago, from Canada, I think ; since when it has been con- 
stantly cultivated by some of our farmers, and now nearly 
every farmer raises it, although a very few, after trying it a 
year or two, discontinued it, some because they thought it 
would overrun their whole farm, and some because •' the 
women " could not use it ; neither of which do I consider 
valid objections. It will live in the ground over winter, so 
that it may be sown at any time from the harvesting of one 
crop to the gathering of the next ; but we usually sow it after 
all the other crops are in, and harvest it before it is so ripe as 
to shell off from the straw — it being necessary to cut it when 
the dew is on. Our farmers often keep the same piece tc 
Indian wheat for several successive years, and it seems to do 
as well so. If the soil is too rich, it " runs to straw " too 
much. The crop is from 45 to 50 bushels to the acre, about 
the same as oats, although both often produce 75 to 110 bush- 
els per acre on our soil. The average weight is about 48 lbs. 
per bushel, and 16 to 18 lbs. of superfine flour per bushel. 
The canail I consider worth more per pound than oats for 
stock ; it is quite bitter, and seems to act as a tonic, and 
sharpens the appetite much. I think this grain is worth full 
one- quarter more than oats for horses — possessing, to a good 
degree, the property of corn that makes fat, and that of oats 
that produces muscle. — Country Gentleman. 



DISEASES AND ENEMIES OP WHEAT. 557 



CHAPTER XX. 

DISEASES AND ENEMIES OP WHEAT. 

As we have now given somewhat in detail the history of 
the wheat plant, its habitat, its physiology and chemistry, and 
mode of culture, we will proceed to notice at greater or less 
length those diseases and dangers to which it is subject during 
its growth, or after maturity, and which serve to diminish the 
certainty with which the agriculturist might otherwise depend 
upon an abundant supply of the " staff of life " in proportion 
to the ground cultivated, and the quantity of seed sown. But 
as many of the causes acting unfavorably upon the produc- 
tion of the wheat crop have been mentioned with more or less 
perspicuity in our foregoing remarks, we need not again dwell 
upon these items, when especially under consideration, at so 
great a length as we should do if they were not already some- 
what familiar to the attentive reader. 

The causes affecting the wheat plant deleteriously, may be 
enumerated as follows % — Terrestrial, atmospheric, agricultural, 
and constitutional ; and these several causes and the special 
application of the terms here used require a few words of 
explanation, or must, to prevent confusion, be defined as to 
our application of the words. 

Under the term terrestrial causes, we would include all that 
pertains to the soil, and its aptitude or otherwise for the cul- 
ture of wheat, on account of original constitution or subse- 
quent changes, accidental or intentional. These causes have 
been already discussed sufficiently fully in the foregoing pages 
to render superfluous more than merely to mention here that 
they have relation to the chemistry and constitution of the 



558 THE WHEAT PLANT 

soils, making them more or less fit to afford sustenance to the 
wheat plant itself, or to promote the production of plants and 
animals inimical to it. 

Atmospheric causes affecting the wheat plant consist in the 
general aggregation of aerial phenomena called climate, and 
those special departures from the usual climatic course, which 
give to the character of an entire year the peculiarities which 
are referred to as the season of such or such a year, and 
which modify the climate to such an extent that climatic apti- 
tude for wheat culture varies greatly in the same place in diff- 
erent years. 

Agricultural causes include all those separate and often 
distinct modifying influences affecting successful agriculture 
which depend upon the preparation of the grounds, their pro- 
tection from obviable causes of injury to the crop during the 
entire process of culture, and even in the storehouse and 
granary after the growth of the crop is completed. 

Under constitutional causes are grouped together the 
pathological conditions of the plant itself, and the vegetable 
and animal parasites and enemies by which it is endangered 
at any period of its existence from the moment of germina- 
tion until germination again, some of which are entirely 
obviable and most or all of which are capable of great mod- 
ification in their deleterious effects by the application of skill 
on the part of the agriculturist. 

As many of these causes already mentioned have been dis- 
cussed in other portions of this report, we will here only 
advert to those prominently which have not been elsewhere 
examined. 

The conditions of the earth as to constituents and prepara- 
tion have been pretty fully discussed in those parts of our 
report devoted to the subjects of agricultural chemistry, 
draining, etc., and need not be repeated in this place, and all 
that is here necessary is, to remind the agriculturist that due 
regard being had to the condition of the soil chemically, and 
to the proper draining, plowing, and other preparatory pro- 



JAUNDICE. — HLIGHT. 559 

cesses, the percentage of chances in favor of a good and cer- 
tain yield are greatly increased. And we must advert again 
to the fact that draining is an important part of the prepar- 
atory work for a good crop, as by draining, winter-killing is 
rendered less likely to occur, and a more constant and equable 
supply of moisture is secured, as draining prevents excesses 
at some periods of the year and deficiencies at others, both of 
which conditions of supply are injurious to wheat. 

The atmospheric causes which affect the productiveness of 
the wheat plant are mostly so far removed from the control 
of human skill that but little can be accomplished to secure 
the crop from injury b}~ the operation of these causes, among 
which may be mentioned untimely frosts, storms of wind, 
hail or rain, lack of snow, sudden and violent changes of 
temperature in the winter, etc., all of which are entirely 
removed from the control of man, and their effects can only 
be slightly modified by having regard to the proper mode of 
cultivation. 

Icterus or Jaundice, is the name of a condition of the 
wheat stalks, which occurs most commonly upon rich argilla- 
ceous, imperfectly diained lands, after the cool rains of spring. 
The stalks turn yellow and many of them perish in such 
seasons as yield a superabundance of moisture in the spring, 
because the roots are elongated and enfeebled in such circum- 
stances and do not- transmit a sufficiently concentrated and 
nourishing sap to the plant, and they die for want of a 
proper pabulum to sustain their growth, which has been made 
rapid at the expense of their vigor. Proper draining and 
cultivation will in a great measure obviate this malady. If 
the earth be too compact and tenacious on account of the 
superabundance of clay in its composition, repeated plowings 
and manurings, with such manures as render the earth porous 
and mellow, are of great advantage, and if carried sufficiently 
far will entirely prevent the disease above named. 

Blight or Withering. — A dry state of the atmosphere, and a 
clear sky and great heat of the sun immediately following 



560 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

light showers, at the period when wheat is " in the milk," i. e., 
when the albumen and starch are still in a liquid state, or a 
prolonged drought at the same period, are ordinarily the causes 
of a condition of the grain known by the above name, which 
consists essentially in a too early desiccation and maturity of 
the grains by means of which, not having continued in a state 
of growth long enough to be well-filled by a deposition of the 
proper contents of farina, although the skin of the grain was 
already fully developed, it assumes a shriveled appearance, and 
does not yield largely of flour. Such wheat is called blasted, 
blighted, withered, or badly nourished. This diseased condition 
is almost or quite unavoidable. 

Lodging. — Wheat upon rich moist soils, although growing 
luxuriantly, does not produce so firm and elastic stalks as upon 
drier or poorer soils, because of the too dilute condition of 
the sap, producing large but watery, or succulent stalks, leaves 
them more feeble. If heavy winds succeed rains, while such 
stalks and head are yet heavy with the retained rain drops, 
they bend or break near the roots, and mat together, not being 
strong enough to raise up again become in part over-heated, 
retaining their moisture and in part dried by the rays of the 
sun, and if the ground be not free from weeds, these overgrow 
them, and they are then attacked by rust almost without fail, 
and the crop is lost. If only bent the stalks resume their 
erect posture so soon as the water is shaken off and the wind 
ceases blowing. 

Rolling light soils after sowing, to give them more con- 
sistence, and properly draining the richer, moister lands, will 
prevent the occurrence of lodging to a great extent. 

Tornadoes, hail-storms, and very heavy rains often break 
down and destroy fields of wheat when approaching maturity, 
but for these evils there is no remedy applicable, beyond the 
careful and skillful culture which may favor the development 
of strong healthy stalks, and the selection of such varieties 
of wheat as produce a short, firm straw, for cultivation in those 
localities which are more particularly liable to the occurrence 



GERMINATION OP WHEAT IN THE STRAY/. 561 

of heavy storms. But these principles have already been suf- 
ficiently discussed in our preceding remarks, and we will pass 
on to a consideration of the next branch of this important 
subject, the diseases and accidents to which wheat is liable, to 
wit : agricultural causes of failure to secure a good crop. 

Many of the agricultural causes of a deficient crop have 
already been pointed out and their remedies suggested, and 
but few of these remain to be mentioned. In our remarks 
upon the wheat region, manuring, the chemistry of agriculture, 
etc., we have pretty fully demonstrated that a proper selection 
of the seed, and preparation of the ground, together with a 
nice discrimination of the season of sowing, go far toward 
securing a profitable return for labor applied, but this is not 
all, for some few accidents to which wheat is liable, are so 
strictly agricultural that they deserve a special notice here or 
elsewhere in the remainder of this disquisition. The only one 
we will advert to here, however, is 

Germination of Wheat in the Straw. — The importance of a 
discussion of this subject may be inferred from a statement 
made by reliable authority, M. Emilien Dupont, in his " Essai 
sur . . . le ble," to the effect that the loss of one-third of 
the wheat crop of Lower Canada, in 1855, was due to this 
cause alone. 

When wheat has reached entire maturity it constantly has 
a natural tendency, in favorable circumstances, to undergo the 
process of germination, and if, at the time of harvesting, the 
wheat be exposed to the conjoined influences of warmth and 
moisture, even while yet in the straw, germination will occur, 
and those changes of the contents of the grain already ad- 
verted to, and which impair or destroy entirely the fitness of 
it for the purposes of bread-making, must necessarily occur. 
Agriculturists who are not careful to avoid these influences, 
that is, those who permit their wheat to lie a length of time 
on the ground, and exposed to the dews and rains of the 
season and the heat of the sun, will find their grain sprouted, 



562 the wheat plant. 

and even a comparatively small portion being thus affected, 
the quality of the grain is greatly deteriorated. 

This evil, so greatly injurious to the interests of the com- 
munity at large, as well as the individual producer, is one 
which it is comparatively easy to obviate, as will be seen by 
the following directions, and reasons for these directions, to 
prevent its occurrence. 

Heat and moisture conjointly operating cause germination 
in grains entirely matured, and it is only required to prevent 
the concurrence of these causes and conditions to prevent the 
evil, and the means are suggested almost spontaneously to the 
intelligent farmer. 

The time at which wheat is cut is a matter of importance 
for two reasons, — the first is that an earlier or later cutting 
has an influence upon the germinating tendency of the grain 
while necessarily remaining in the straw, and the second is 
that it also determines in a greater or less degree the falling 
out and loss of the grains in the various handlings to which 
wheat is subjected, until at last threshed out in such manner 
as to secure the product. 

The most reliable information we have been able to obtain, 
leads us to adopt the opinion that grain cut a short time be- 
fore complete maturity, secures a better yield than when cut- 
ting is postponed until such perfect maturity has been reached, 
because, first, the grain is not so liable to shed out during the 
process of harvesting ; and because, second, the maturation 
of the grain goes on in the straw while this is drying, and is 
completed when desiccation has been completed, and it can 
not germinate until this maturation has been perfected, at 
which time, if the cutting has been early, the straw will be 
sufficiently dry to permit its deposit in barns or stacks with 
safety. The grain may be cut with advantage to the quality 
a- well as quantity of the product, while the husk or chaff 
has still a number of green streaks or markings upon it, and 
this early cutting is a certain preventive of sprouting in the 



shocks. 563 

sheaf for some days at least after cutting, and should, for the 
purpose of gaining time, and saving grain and making it of 
better quality even, always be performed. 

After cutting, an immediate shocking up of the grain in 
such a manner as to favor desiccation and prevent the influ- 
ence of moist heat, should be practiced ; and if properly per- 
formed, shocking; will secure the grain against this evil for an 
indefinite period of time. The most economical modes of 
making shocks are, perhaps, the following : 

Conical shocks are made by placing one sheaf upright, 
arranging four others around this in a slanting position, and 
then filling the intervals between these with four others, and 
then capping the whole by a large sheaf bound near the butt 
of the straw and spread equally over all. The nine shock 
sheaves should not exceed one foot in diameter each. 

Diamond Shocks. — Take ten sheaves and place them in two 
parallel lines, join their heads, and give them a slant. Then 
join two other sheaves by a good band, and place them on 
the others in such a manner that they may incline the heads 
toward the ground and spread over all the others. The shocks 
of this latter fashion are perhaps better able to resist the 
winds than the former, because they afford it a free passage 
through the space between the butts of the grain. If the 
grain is bound thus at the time of cutting, it is necessary that 
it should not contain many weeds, otherwise it will be neces- 
sary to leave it in the swath for a few days. 

Swath Shocks. — Swath shocks have this advantage over 
the sheaf shocks, that they may be made at any time and in 
any condition of the grain, dry or moist, clean or full of 
weeds. They are made in the following manner: Take a 
stake about four feet long, sharpened at one end, and pierced 
with two holes at the upper end, one above the other, so that 
two poles about three feet long, may be put into them in the 
form of a cross — place the swath grain in this cross, slanting 
it more and more until a cone of four or five feet in diameter 
at the base has been formed, then withdrawing the poles and 



GtM THE WHEAT PLAINT. 

lifting out the stake, put on a cap formed of a reversed sheaf. 
If there be fear of winds, the cone may be surrounded by a 
band of straw a little below the heads. 

In well made shocks, grain may be safely kept for months, 
in all weathers, and its preparation does not require much 
more time than the labor of binding, which is then done. 

Having now adverted to the terrestrial, atmospheric, and 
agricultural causes affecting injuriously the productiveness 
of the wheat cr>op, in the present or preceding portions of 
this article, we will now proceed to a consideration of those 
causes of injury which we have seen fit to call constitutional, 
or those to which the wheat plant is by its nature exposed, 
and which, although susceptible of very great modification, 
by properly applied knowledge, are, nevertheless, in the pres- 
ent state of agricultural science, not wholly remediable by 
human ingenuity. 

The simple diseases of wheat inherent in the nature of the 
plant itself, and not produced by something superadded, are 
but few and unimportant, but by nature wheat is exposed to 
the attacks of diseases whose ravages are very great, which 
are caused by agents which are independent existences, so to 
say ; that is, by organisms which affect the plant by feeding 
upon its nutricious juices, and either destroying its vitality 
or perverting its development to such an extent as to make it 
unfit for the accomplishment of the purposes for which it 
was designed. These agencies are known as parasites, that 
is organisms which draw the materials for their nutrition and 
growth from some other organism, which they either injure 
or destroy by robbing it of its vitality for the support of their 
own being. These parasitic organisms are divided into two 
classes, vegetable and animal, and a description of the more 
prominent and important of the individual varieties belong- 
ing to these two classes, will make up the remainder of what 
we have to say in regard to the most important of all vegeta- 
ble production, the wheat plant, and although we will be com- 
pelled to condense what might, from its importance, fill many 



DEGENERATION OP WHEAT. 565 

pages, into a comparatively small compass, yet we hope to be 
able to point out such practical and useful indications of the 
causes and cures of these maladies as to lead agriculturists to 
study more carefully the nature of these diseases, and their 
appropriate remedies, in order to make the production of 
the wheat crop a more certainly remunerative investment of 
time and labor than it is now. 

Before entering upon a consideration of the diseases of 
wheat, caused by parasites, it seems proper to make a few re- 
marks upon the subject of the 

Degeneration of Wheat. — It has long been held in a tradi- 
tionary manner that wheat degenerates, and that there is an 
inherent tendency so to say for wheat to change in variety in 
certain circumstances, but this is an error. The causes which 
operate to enable chess to supplant wheat are alike active to 
cause one variety of wheat to supersede another, and a refer- 
ence to the arguments upon the subject of chess will be a suf- 
ficient guide as to the principle involved. 

The more prolific varieties of wheat when mixed with the 
less prolific, bringing forth proportionally more grains, will 
in a few successive crops give a preponderance to the more 
prolific varieties, and in the end supersede entirely the others, 
and thus without one variety being transformed into another, 
the character of the crop may be entirely changed in a few 
years, by the presence at first of so small a number of grains 
of the less desirable but more prolific varieties, that their ex- 
istence was unnoticed in the seed altogether. 

The only means of preserving a variety of wheat pure, is 
to be exceedingly careful in the selection of unmixed seed. 
and if this be done continually no deterioration or change of 
variety can occur. The time will come, perhaps soon, when 
such a nice appreciation of the aptitude of different varieties 
of wheat for particular soils, will be attained, that, to obtain 
such varieties as are suitable for particular localities, wheat 
nurseries will be established for the purpose of procuring and 



566 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

preserving all desirable varieties of seed wheat, as is now done 
to secure proper seed from which to raise plants of other 
genera. 

Besides this mode of change in the variety of wheat grown 
upon a single farm or in a particular district, there is another 
mode in which wheat is gradually changed by the influences 
of soil, climate and manner of cultivation, as from red to 
white, from winter to spring, or awned to beardless wheat, and 
for such changes, if not desirable, a change in the mode of 
cultivation, as to manuring, plowing, time of sowing, etc., will 
prevent their occurrence, or if skilfully directed efforts are 
applied, favor such alteration in the character of the plant as 
may be desired ; but, the easiest method, perhaps, of keeping 
up a particular variety of wheat is to import seed as often as 
deterioration is becoming evident, from some northern dis- 
trict where such variety grows habitually. Wheat assumes 
the character of a new variety, but very slowly indeed, under 
the influences of climate and soil, but yet such a change may 
in time be effected, as we have* reason to believe that all 
varieties of the plant are the result merely of causes continu- 
ing for a long time in operation, and producing all the kinds 
of wheat now in cultivation from one or two original varieties, 
but no specific change has ever occurred in this plant, and all 
its varieties remain mere varieties, and could be reproduced 
again and again if lost, by a compliance with certain condi- 
tions, now known or yet to be known. 

Vegetable Parasites. — Every creature which fixes itself upon 
another creature for support or nourishment, has received the 
name of parasite. Parasites pass through all or only a part 
of the phases of their existence, upon the individuals where 
they have been deposited in the shape of eggs, grains or 
spores. True parasites are those which live at the expense of 
the juices elaborated by the plants which support them, as the 
mistletoe, broom-tape, and a great number of mushrooms, etc., 
while the false parasites are those which merely find a point 



MILDEWS. 567 

of attachment and support upon the plant to which they 
adhere, and which thus live as well upon one individual as 
upon another, as the ivy, and various other creepers. 

Among the false parasites we do not know any that have 
been remarked as causing damage to a great extent, although 
they are sometimes attached to grain, but it is not so with 
true parasites. But as most of these are cryptogamic plants, 
we will say a word in regard to the mode of reprod action of 
these singular plants, before entering into details, in order to 
make the following explanations intelligible to the reader. 

Botanists divide vegetables into two great classes, viz. : those 
in which the organs of reproduction are visible or apparent, 
which they call phanerogamic, and those in which these or- 
gans do not appear and seem not to exist, which they call 
cryptogamic. For a long time the reproductive processes of 
several families of these latter, such as the wedines, muce- 
diues, etc., was unknown ; there was even a hesitation in de^ 
ciding as to several individuals of these families whether they 
belonged to the vegetable kingdom even. But since the in- 
vention of convex glasses, and the attentive studies of the 
learned physiologist, Benedict Prevost, it can no longer be 
doubted that the molds, the rusts of plants, etc., are real 
vegetables, which, although they do not conform entirely like 
others, yet do not the less follow the same general rules of 
birth, growth and death, and of reproduction by seeds. And 
from the point of view of a philosophic study of nature, the 
mold which is cut with the edge of the knife in opening a 
loaf of bread, which is a little stale, while showing its roots, 
stems and branches, its flowers and grains, productions which 
could not have come into being except from a seed which has 
resisted the action of fermentation in the dough, and the heat 
of the oven, does not any less announce to you the supreme 
artist, than those beautiful productions which make the charm 
of the fields and the beauty of the garden. 

If the dust of caries or any other livedo be spread upon 
the surface of water, maintained at temperature of 10° or 12° 



568 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Reaumur (55° to 60° Fahrenheit), each globule of the dust 
will be seen at the end of a few days, swelled to double its 
previous diameter, and then sprouting a tubercle five or six 
times as long as it is in diameter. This tubercle then divides 
at its extremity, into six, eight, or even ten branches, some- 
times sessile and sometimes ramified. These branches still 
later present apparent articulations, or rather internal grains 
infinitely small, and at the same time the globules will appear 
withered and show reticulations, which without doubt previ- 
ously contained the grains or sporules now developed, and 
which we can not refuse to regard as the seeds of the plant. 
The globules, then, which form the caries, rust, etc., of plants, 
are cryptogamic plants half grown, and which must be placed 
in other circumstances to complete their development. This 
being established, we will occupy ourselves with a separate 
consideration of caries, smut, and rust, the only parasitic 
plants recognized as injurious to grain. 

To the foregoing concise description of parasites we will 
add, as a curious example of animal parasites, the following 
description of " Rust in Oats," not because of its being the 
appropriate place for considering this branch of the subject, 
but merely to give an example of the second class of these 
enemies to the farmer and the destroyers of his labors. 

" Rust in Oats- — What is it? — Throughout the whole south- 
western portion of the Union, the oat crop has suffered from 
a terrible blight, which, from its resemblance to the fungus 
substance that sometimes attacks wheat by that name, has 
been called rust. So far as we are informed, rust in oats has 
hitherto been unknown. We have never heard or read of 
any thing of the kind, in any section of the country. The 
fact that it is thus unusual, opens a wide and interesting field 
to the naturalist, and in this case to the entomologist, as it 
invites investigation in a channel, so far as we can ascertain, 
heretofore unexplored. 

" While in West Tennessee, a short time since, we took 
occasion to examine the blade of the oat under a microscope 



RUST IN OATS. 569 

(kindly furnished us by a friend), and were greatly surprised 
with the phenomenon which the glass revealed. Since then 
we have followed up those examinations, by the aid of more 
pov^erful instruments, at the Medical College in this city, in 
company with several scientific gentlemen, among whom were 
Drs. Briggs and Buchanan, of the medical faculty. 

" The cause of all this destruction of the oat crop is a living 
worm, too small to be plainly seen with the naked eye. A 
single blade or leaf of the oat sometimes contains hundreds of 
them. They lie incased in the tissues of the leaf or blade, 
where they have been germinated, beneath the epidermis or 
thin pellicle over the exterior portion of the blade, and, as 
they progress in development, the skin of the leaf is raised 
into curious puffy blisters. The growth of the worm subse- 
quently ruptures these, and it escapes to feed on the plant. 
When first released from their covering, they are of a beauti- 
ful, clear, red color, almost transparent, but soon begin to 
change color and form, getting more opaque and dark in 
appearance, until, in the course of transformation, they 
become a black bug, with legs and wings, when they attack 
the head or grain of the oats. 

" Under the microscope, the dust which remains on the leaf 
closely resembles that on the wings of butterflies. 

" How this innumerable army of infinitesimal worms origina- 
ted, is yet a mystery. It is a singular fact, however, that 
wherever the greatest quantity of rain has fallen, there the 
oat crop has fared the worst. In our recent trip through 
West Tennessee, we saw but a single field of oats, between 
the Mississippi and Tennessee rivers, which was not a failure, 
or into which it would not be folly to put a scythe-blade. 
That field was near Denmark, in Madison county, and was 
sown very early. It is well known that more rain has fallen 
in West Tennessee this season than in any other part of the 
State ; hence the extreme wet weather must have had some 
agency in the production of this animalcule. "It is also well 
known that moisture and heat will produce and multiply ani- 
48 



570 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

mal life, millions per hour, and therein we judge is the secret 
of this destruction of the oat crop. It is one of those cases 
of natural phenomena which occur only at a certain stage in 
the growth of plants, and under peculiar states of temperature 
and weather. It may happen next season, or it may not occur 
again for many seasons.'' — Southern Homestead. 

Vegetable Parasites. — We will now direct attention to that 
class of parasites which are of vegetable nature, and which 
are particularly noxious to the ceralia which are objects of 
cultivation. These parasites are all minute plants of the 
cryptogamic class, and are mostly microscopic, being in their 
individual magnitude so minute as to escape the scrutiny of 
the unassisted eye, but are yet in a state of aggregation not 
only discernible, but by their destructive influences upon the 
products of the farmer's efforts to secure a good return for his 
toil so terribly important, as to be but too well known when 
circumstances have permitted or favored their development in 
an unwonted degree. These minute vegetations are like all 
other plants produced from seeds or their equivalents, but 
unlike non -parasitic growths they only flourish when they 
find a vegetable which affords them a point of support, and 
already elaborated organic elements for their nutrition, while 
the others almost exclusively draw their nourishment directly 
from the earth and air, and combine its elements into their 
tissues and products. 

Without attempting a classification of the vegetable para- 
sites which are so prominently injurious to the wheat plant, 
we will describe some of the individual varieties ; and first, 
that one which produces the disease known as 

Mildew. — It often happens that a field of wheat which pre- 
sented every appearance of a good return, is found near, or at 
harvest, to have been attacked by this disease, and suffers by 
it to the extent of loss, or damage, of one-half or more of the 
crop. We copy below, from Morton's Cyclopedia, a descrip- 
tion : " Mildew, a word which is applied in various instances 
where plants or other substances, as paper, linen, glass, etc., 



MILDEW. 571 

are spotted with mold, or other minute fungi. The word, in 
its stricter sense, if it be true that it is but another form of 
the German mel-tluiw, or meal-dew, should seem to indicate 
such molds as those which are so prevalent on the leaves 
both of trees and herbaceous plants, forming white, mealy 
patches ; but it is by no means confined to them, and, indeed, 
is more especially given to a particular disease in wheat, alto- 
gether distinct from that with which vines and hops are so 
frequently infested. We will, then, first consider the white 
species, which exhibit, in general, very similar phenomena, 
though botanically distinct ; and then briefly advert to the 
disease of wheat which is, in particular years or districts, so 
severe a scourge. 

" The first kind, then, which is known to French gardeners 
under the name of blanc, or blanc de rosier, etc., is very widely 
distributed in one or other of its forms. Few natural orders 
of plants are altogether exempt from its attacks, but it is espe- 
cially in peas, vines, hops, roses, and peaches, that it attracts 
the attention of the cultivator. Forest trees, too — as for in- 
stance the maple — when infested by it, are sometimes as white 
as if they had been washed with a coat of lime. The first 
stage of growth exhibits round, white, mealy spots, which are 
produced principally on the upper surfaces of the leaves, but 
extend likewise to the stems, and also to the floral envelops. 
There is some difference of opinion as to their origin ; some 
botanists maintaining, that they are first developed within the 
tissues, and make their way through the stomala; while Le- 
veille and Decaisne, in a late article in the R<vue Hurticalc, 
maintain that ihey always originate externally, and that a 
previously diseased state of the tissue invariably exists. To 
this view, which has been stated more especially with respect 
to the mildew of the vines, we are not at present prepared to 
accede, as it is contrary to every observation that we have 
made, and to those of a very talented friend who had no pre- 
vious knowledge of the subject, and, consequently, no preju- 
dices to overcome. 



572 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



" Be the origin, however, what it may, the spot consists of 
delicate, creeping threads, which usually radiate from the 
stomata, and give rise to erect articulated flocci, the ultimate 
articulations of which, at length become greatly constricted, 
and fall off in the shape of more or less elongated spores ; 
these have the power of reproducing the plant. In this stage 
of growth they accord exactly with the genus ' Oidiiim.' 

" The wheat mildew 
(Fig. 26), which is a 
very different structure, 
is a disease of a much 
more statistical import- 
ance in this country ; 
its ravages, as in the 
harvest of 1850, being 
most extensive, and its 
effects, both in respect 
of produce and value, 
being most disastrous. 
The reduction of pro- 
duce may safely be 
estimated, in mildew 
years, at one-half in 
badly affected crops ; 
while the value of the 
produce is reduced from 
a fourth to a third. 
Unfortunately for this, 
the moat formidable of 
the diseases to which corn (wheat) is subject, no remedy has 
hitherto been discovered. 

' : Wheat mildew is due to the attack of a parasitic fungus, 
which is developed beneath the surface from a branched my- 
celium, and makes its way through the cuticle in the form of 
a little black or deep brown sori, composed of clavate threads, 
divided above into two cavities, filled with a grumous mass, 




Fig. 26. 



MILDEW. 



573 



and a large oil globule. In an early stage of growth, the 
swollen heads of the filaments are undivided, and it is then 
known to botanists by the name of 'Credo linearis. A true 
Credo-- Credo rubijo vera (Fig. 27). 
is frequently mixed with it, and 
therefore, has been supposed to be 
a mere form; an opinion to which 
we were once inclined, but which 
does not appear to be tenable. The 
discoveries by Corda and Leveille, 
of the mycelium of this and other 
allied plants, has completely estab- 
lished the fact of their being real- 
ly fungi, and not mere alterations 
of the cellular tissue, as supposed 
by linger; and this is confirmed 
by the circumstance that the spores 
may be readily made to germinate. 
Unfortunately, however, nothing is 
known as to their mode of propa 
gation. The fact of mildew in- 
creasing so fast in foggy or damp, 
warm weather, is as consistent with the notion of the tissues 
being pervaded by something capable of propagating the fun- 
gus — whether in the shape of mycelium or granular matter, 
for the spores, from their greater size, could not possibly be 
there — as with the notion of propagation without ; for in 
germination it is the spores themselves which germinate. In- 
deed there are very few wheat crops, be the reason what it 
may, in which mildew may not be found very extensively ; 
but only in such atmospheric circumstances as are favorable 
to its growth, does it arrive at such a state of perfection as to 
become injurious. 

Mildew is rare on other cereals, except wheat, but may be 
found most extensively on grasses and seeds, so as to make 
any preventive or palliative pains which may be taken, almost 




Fig. 27. 



574 tiu: wheat plant. 

hopeless. An able pamphlet was, indeed, written some years 
since, by Mr. Tycho Wing, the late very talented agent of 
the Duke of Bedford, Thorney, holding forth great hopes to 
the few farmers if they would clear their ditches of weeds and 
other grasses ; and as the fields are usually cultivated to the 
very margin of the drains, there, if anywhere, such measures 
might be expected to be efficacious. It was very evident in 
1850, and indeed has been a matter of experience formerly, 
that the lighter soils are more subject to mildew than those 
which are stiff and heavy, and that the earlier kinds of wheat 
are least affected. Heavy crops are always more subject, from 
the greater stagnation of air, than those which are light ; but 
as the disease is seriously injurious only in certain years, and 
sometimes for several years together scarcely attracts notice, 
the farmer will not, probably, in the end, derive any advantage 
from attempts to guard against a heavy crop. Indeed, the 
best cultivated farms, at least in the district with which we are 
more immediately acquainted, suffered most during the late 
harvest ; and we fear, therefore, must be looked upon as one 
of those unavoidable disasters which reduce the average of the 
farmer's profits, and which he must, therefore, previously take 
into calculation, be his skill what it may. 

It has long been supposed that the berberry has a great in- 
fluence in the production of the mildew, probably from the 
fact of its being very generally attacked by a fungus with 
rusty spores, which are supposed to communicate the disease. 
The structure of the two genera is so very different that this is 
scarcely probable, and when it is considered that the berberry 
in many districts is wholly unknown, and in others far from 
common, the strongest evidence alone can be considered as 
sufficient to establish the fact. Still competent authorities are 
much divided in opinion, and though in this country the 
notion has not met with much encouragement from scientific 
men, it is perhaps worthy of remark that a commissioner ap- 
pointed expressly to examine the subject, by the Royal Agricul- 
tural Society of Lille — a town which has nurtured several 



CARIES. 



575 



excellent botanists — came, after due examination, to the con- 
clusion that the matter is not without foundation." 

How far the remedies we* shall point out for the prevention 
of other maladies belonging to the wheat plant may be appli- 
cable in case of mildew can only be determined by future ex- 
periment and observation. 

Besides the above parasite there are several others of so 
much importance, that we will devote some pages to a descrip- 
tion of them, — and the more particularly is this necessary, 
because they are more prevalent in this country than the one 
already mentioned. These diseases are all included by Corda 
in his work upon the subject translated for the American 
Journal of Agriculture and Science, by E. Goodrich Smith, 
under the German name " Brand" a blight, blast, or mortifi- 
cation, and are caused in all the cereals by a family of fungi 
" which natural historians call by the family name of the 
Cceomacece" one branch of which the Uredines, being more 
noxious than any others will claim almost exclusive attention. 
The Uredines infest all species of cereals and gramineae, and 
give origin to the different appellations of rust, smut, etc., of 
which we will consider next in order the one called caries. 

Uredo Caries, De Can- 




dolle, Fig. 28. — Caries, 
which is also called mildew, 
caroncule (an excrescence), 
fouedre ! and still more fre- 
quently hie noir (black 
wheat.) scarcely ever at- 
tacks any other grain than 
wheat. This malady is due 
to a mushroom of the fam- Fig. 28. 

ily Uredines, takes its origin in the interior juices of the plant 
itself, and does not appear to be capable of exterior com- 
munication. Half developed heads of grain have been sprin- 
kled with caries, at different periods, and have never on that 
account shown any indication of the malady- The grains 



576 THE WHEAT PLAN i . 

which have been affected by caries, preserve very nearly their 
volume and their form, but the heads which bear them are 
known at a glance. They are straight, paler than the others, 
and the envelops of the grain, in which alone the malady is 
concentrated, are ordinarily so much spread, that they show 
this uncovered. The pericarp of the grain in place of inclos- 
ing flour, only contains a black material, greasy to the touch, 
and which attaches itself to the finger when rubbed. The 
spores of the caries are round, reticulated, provided with ped- 
icels proceeding from a pulpy body which replaces the interior 
substance of the grain. 

The dust of caries unlike that of smut, emits an unpleasant 
odor resembling that of the sea or of spoiled fish. This naus- 
eous odor may even be detected in the bread made of wheat 
attacked by caries, the color of which it also hightens. The 
seminiform grains of the caries being in immediate contact 
with the grain in the head, attach themselves ordinarily to the 
hairs which garnish the extremity of the berry opposite the 
germ, and thus resist the action of the flail and even the win- 
nowing fan, and it is only by means of an apparatus armed 
with brushes, to which the grain, in certain mills, is subjected, 
that this dust can be removed. The flour, although made 
much better by this operation, preserves some traces, never- 
theless, of this dust. 

The stalks of wheat which will produce carious grain, may 
be known as soon as they have sprung up, their leaves are of 
a deeper green than the others; somewhat later their stalks 
are tarnish (ternes-paded ?) If a head which is attacked, be 
examined before it escapes from its envelop, the stamens will 
be found flabby, and the stigmas without fibrilla, and the em- 
bryo having already the odor of the caries. And as soon as 
the heads have shown themselves, it is easy to distinguish 
those which are attacked from those which are healthy. They 
are bluish, they have their husks more tightly closed, the em- 
bryo preserves its stigmata, and the anthers adhering to it are 
flabby and without pollen (dust). Soon afterward by the 



CARIES. 577 

progress of vegetation, the carious heads become larger, and 
become bristly, the grain increases in size, the pulpy substance 
which it contains takes an ashy color which soon passes into 
a brown. 

There are frequently found sound heads upon affected 
stalks, sound grains mixed with carious grains in the same 
head, and finally grains half sound and half carious. 

The following is, according to De Candolle and Benedict 
Prevost, the mode of procedure with caries upon the grain to 
which it is attached, or with which it is accidentally brought 
in contact in the field. 

The grain swells more promptly when the ground is moist 
and the weather warm. The caries swells at the same time, 
sprouts its tubercles or branches, and finishes its evolution in 
a few days. It is then that the buds or seminiform sporules 
absorb with the nourishing juices of the plant, traverse its 
canals, and raising themselves slowly to the point destined 
by nature, even to the germ of the new grain, where they are 
separately developed, the only place where the circumstances 
necessary for their multiplication concur. The nourishment 
destined for the substance of the grain is absorbed by them ; 
thus even a portion of that which should have formed the 
stamens and the pistil, which are consequently only imper- 
fectly developed, but, what is a singular thing, that which 
serves for the growth of the pericarp (or bark of the grain), 
and of the husks, is not diminished, but is, on the contrary, 
augmented. Thus all the germs of the carious head enlarge 
by means of the caries itself, while there are a number in 
the healthy heads which are blighted. Hence the grains of 
the former are generally more numerous than the latter.^ 

Caries attacks sometimes one-fourth, one-half, or even 
three-fourths of the grains. If the air in the vicinity of the 
sea seems opposed to rust, it appears, on the contrary, very 
favorable to caries. In the counties of Kamarouska, Temis- 
conata, Pimouski, etc., Lower Canada, this scourge decimates, 
nearly every harvest, the products of the wheat fanner. But 
49 



578 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

we may also say that no effort has yet been made to counter- 
act this malady. And it is known that of all diseases of 
wheat, this is the easiest to control, because it has never been 
known to resist proper soaking of the seed in lime water. 

If in a field the seed of which has been properly lime- 
water soaked, there are still traces of caries found, it is only 
due to seminiform sporules which may have remained in the 
ground at the time of harvest, and which particular circum- 
stances have developed at the time of germination. Hence, 
again, the wise precaution never to sow cereals upon a stubble 
field attacked by caries. 

One of the most efficacious and least expensive lime-water 
soakings is the following : Dissolve 1J lbs. of sulphate of 
soda (glauber salts), in two gallons of water. When the salt 
is well dissolved, moisten or sprinkle the Leap of wheat with 
a broom, taking care to stir it with a shovel until all the heap 
is moistened and the water begins to drip or run out at the 
bottom, then dry the heap with lime recently slacked and 
mixed with ashes, so that each grain shall be well impregnated 
and encrusted. Seed prepared thus may be kept a number of 
days, or may be sown immediately. 

Sulphate of copper (blue vitriol), may also be taken in place 
of glauber salts, in the proportion of one pound to two gallons 
of water. This latter liming would be more certain than the 
former even, because the sulphate of copper being an active 
poison, would protect the seed from the insects which are in 
the habit of attacking it in the ground ; seed prepared in this 
way may cause the death of birds which eat it ; the fact has 
been tried and tested a number of times. 

To, the foregoing description of this parasite we will only 
add a few confirmatory or explanatory remarks. This para- 
site is known by its effects, under different appellations in 
different countries ; it is called Bunt, Norton's Cyclopedia ; 
Pepper Brand, Penny Magazine ; Uredo Caries, De Candolle ; 
U. foetida, Bauer ; XT. Litophila, Ditmar ; TiUetia carles, Tul- 
urae ; and other species peculiar to particular plants, have been 



PEPPER BRAND. 579 

named and described by various authors, under different 
names. (See Figs. 29, 30, 31, 32, and 33.) It has prevailed 
extensively and injuriously, but its nature and the means of 
preventing it being better known, it is to be hoped that its 
ravages may be entirely stayed in a few years, or at least to 
such a degree as to make them of very rare occurrence. 

By reference to the accompanying plates, a quite clear idea 
may be formed of the microscopic appearance of this parasite, 
as these figures were all drawn from more or less greatly mag- 
nified views of the plant in different stages of its development. 

Fig. 30 represents the spores of the Tillctia caries in various 
stages of growth. Fig. 31 the mycelium or filament. Fig. 
32 germinating spores. Fig. 29 spores in situ. Fig. 33 part 
of the integument of a spore. Fig. 34 Fusisporium inoscu- 
lans ; all more or less magnified. 

In reference to the preventive means we have already re- 
commended, we will merely add that a writer in the Country 
Gentleman coincides in the recommendation we have given, to 
soak the seed wheat in a solution of blue vitriol, in the pro- 
portion of one pound of the salt to so much water as will 
cover four or five bushels of wheat. 

The mode in which this soak operates is not only to destroy 
the germs or spores of the Uredo upon the surface of healthy 
grains, but prevents those grains which are diseased from ger- 
minating, and thus, even when the spores of the parasite are 
not themselves destroyed, the production of the stalk upon 
which they must depend for future development being pre- 
vented, they can not find the conditions necessary for their 
growth, and thus perish — while the vigorous and healthy 
wheat grains remain unaffected by the soak, and having no 
spores of the Uredo to support, produce only healthy heads. 
Thus it is not simply by destroying the spores of smut, but 
by preventing the conditions upon which their development 
depends, that the ravages of the disease are restrained. 

Uredo Foe.tida, Pepper Brand, Bauer — described in the 
Penny Magazine of 1833, coincides in general description 



580 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




Fig. 29. 




Fig. 32. 



© 



Fig. 30. 





Fig. 31. 




Fig. 33. 




Fig. 34. 



Fig. 35. 




h 
Fig. 35. 




Fig. 36. 




RUST. 581 

and habits with what we have described as above as U. Caries, 
but the accompanying figures seem to point to another fungus 
of the same family. Whether these are distinct or are only 
seemingly so, on account of differences in the manner and 
time of observation, we are unable to state, and the determin- 
ation of the question is of the less importance, as the saint 
means of prevention are equally effective, whether there be 
two varieties or but one, as we are inclined to suppose, of this 
Uredo. Fig. 35 represents a group of this fungi on their 
spawn, magnified 160,000. Fig. 36 is a young fungus of the 
Uredo foztida not quite ripe, at which time it can be separated 
with its pedicel b from the spawn (magnif. 1000 diamet). Fig. 
37 is a ripe fungus (magnif. 1000 diam.) shedding its seed. 
These seem to us to be the same parasite as already men- 
tioned, and that the difference is apparent only, and not real. 
Uredo rubigo vera, De Candolle — Figs. 38 and 27. — Rust 
like the two preceding parasites ; is a mushroom of the family 
of the uredines. It is developed upon both surfaces of the 
leaves, upon the stubble and upon the heads of the graminae, 
with the appearance of little oval points, pulverulent, project- 
ing, at first yellowish, and afterward becoming black. The 
little streaks which it at first forms in parallel lines at the side 
of the fibers, finally spread, and, joining, form large patches. 
When the rust attacks the grain only feebly, it does not ap- 
pear to be very injurious to it, but when it is considerable, it 
occasions serious losses. Among all the graminae wheat ap- 
pears to be the favorite of rust. 

If the streaks formed by the rust be attentively examined 
upon the stalk, but particularly upon the leaf of the wheat, 
the epidermis will be found split in every instance, and it will 
not be difficult to perceive that the sap extravasated by this 
split gives birth to the mushroom, or at least that it serves as 
a receptacle to the spores of this mushroom, raised from the 
ground by the rains, carried through the air by the winds, or, 
what is perhaps more probable, absorbed in the earth with the 
nourishing juices of the plant. It has been remarked that 



582 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the rust ordinarily shows itself when a very hot sun suddenly 
succeeds rains which have been somewhat prolonged. It is at 
the time when the evaporation of the water left upon the 
stocks and leaves, going on too rapidly, occasions cracks in 
the epidermis or vitreous varnish, which covers all parts, and 
thus permits the sap to deflect from its ordinary course, that 
circumstances favorable to the development of the mushroom 
are presented to its spores, whether they come from the inte- 
rior or exterior. From the time, also, when a stalk of wheat 
is attacked by rust in a somewhat serious manner, it begins to 
languish ; its leaves quickly begin to dry up ; and when the 
rains are infrequent, the malady proceeds from the stalk to 
the head, which also soon turns red. The husk or nearest 
envelop of the grain then drying and adhering to this, soon 
occasions its decomposition, as much by the moisture retained 
by it as that which is maintained by the streaks of the mush- 
room fixed upon its glumes. It will not be rare in these cases 
to see fields of wheat produce less than half what they would 
have done without this accident. 

The more, then, that heat and moisture permit the sporules 
or seminiform germs of the rust to attach themselves to the 
stalks of the grain, and develop themselves^ there, the greater 
will be the damage it may cause. There are certain places, as 
in South Carolina, for example, where the cultivation of wheat 
has had to be abandoned, because the natural humidity of the 
soil, conjoined with the mists, which prevail so frequently in 
that country, too greatly favor the development of rust. On 
the contrary, it has been remarked that, in the vicinity of the 
sea, or in grounds improved by means of lime or leached 
ashes, or manured with sea plants, the rust never exhibits 
itself in such abundance as to cause any considerable damage. 
The following seems to be the reason : 

There is found upon the most of the graminse, and particu- 
larly upon wheat, a certain shining varnish absolutely of the 
same material as glass. Most commonly this vitreous material 
terminates the edges of the leaves by little teeth, resembling 



rust. 583 

a saw of extreme fineness, but always capable of scratching 
the fingers of those who carelessly amuse themselves by fre- 
quently rubbing these leaves in the direction of their length. 
The greater then, the thickness of this glassy layer, and the 
stronger the stalk, the greater will be its resistance to the 
moisture or other atmospheric influences, which might cause 
it to crack and present false issues to the sap upon which the 
rust attaches itself. And it is imagined (conceived) that this 
layer of vitreous material will be stronger in proportion as 
the soil itself contains, or, as are furnished artificially, the 
elements of its composition. It is well known that to produce 
glass, sand is used, with lime and ashes, which are melted to- 
gether by heat, although each one of these substances is 
scarcely fusible if heated alone. If, then, by mixing with the 
soil, lime, ashes, etc., there be placed at the disposition of the 
plant a greater abundance of the materials which enter into 
the composition of the vitreous material with which it is cov- 
ered, it will necessarily absorb a greater quantity, and thereby 
place itself in better condition to resist the rust. The sea- 
weeds, which, by their decomposition produce soda in quan- 
tity, which also enters into the composition of glass will 
produce the same eifect. Thus, too, it has been remarked, 
that the rust has shown itself much more rarely in silicious 
or sandy grounds. 

The rust is the less injurious to grain the nearer this has 
arrived at maturity at the time it is attacked by it. The 
damage which it receives only coming from the suppression 
of its nourishment which it (the root) intercepts to appropri- 
ate it to itself, or which it leads away from its ordinary chan- 
nels, it (the grain) suffers the more it has great need of this 
nourishment. 

As grain ripening early is rarely attacked by rust, and as 
this does not ordinarily show itself until toward the end of 
August, or the beginning of September, perhaps a certain 
continuity of heat is necessary for the development of its 



584 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

seeds, a heat which it can not meet in July or the com- 
mencement of August. 

There has been no means used, so far as I know, to com- 
bat the rust in Ohio. There has been more reason to com- 
plain of it than ever in the district of Quebec during recent 
years, since particularly to escape the fly, the sowing of spring 
grain has been postponed until the commencement of June. 
The vicinity of the sea, in general, preserves the districts of 
Gaspe and Kamouraska. There ought, then, in the places 
where the rust is most to be complained of, after all necessary 
care of the ground by good drainage, be used as much lime 
and ashes as possible as a manure, and a field of stubble 
where rust has made an attack, ought not to be sown, and be- 
sides the seeds ought to be limed as described above. 

Smut. — (Du Carbon), Uredo segctum De Candolle. Smut, 
like caries, is a parasitic mushroom of the family of the 
uredines. It is pulverulent, like all mushrooms of this family, 
and it destroys or replaces the organs in which it is developed. 
Smut has often been confused with caries and rust, although 
its characters are sufficiently distinct to make it readily dis- 
tinguishable from one and from the other. In several places 
the name mildew is also given to the smut. 

Smut sometimes attacks the leaves and stems of the plants, 
but it is the grain itself which it most commonly invades. 
Smut attacks all the graminae, but seems to prefer oats, bar- 
ley and maize. In a field one can scarcely distinguish the 
stalks affected, except by a little less hight, and a somewhat 
tarnished or somewhat paler color. So long as the head has 
not emerged from its envelops, the diseased portions appear 
in almost their natural condition. But as soon as the head 
has separated the leaves which it hid from sight, it appears 
of a pale gray, and in a short time it assumes a black or 
coal-like tint. The floral envelops, the pedicels, the glumes, 
are all altered, changed or consumed ; it is often difficult to 
recognize even a vestige of the grain. It blackens the fingers 



smut. 585 

of those who touch it, and falls into powder if it is shaken ; 
this powder is inodorous. 

The seminiform sporules of the smut, which are infinitely 
small, and still lighter than those of rust and caries, are also pro- 
duced in the interior of the plant. The proof of this is, that 
the heads are found entirely destroyed by the smut, even be- 
fore they emerge from their envelops ; the seeds of the mush- 
room absorbed in the soil with the alimentary liquids of the 
plant having found in the head the circumstances favorable to 
their development. 

Smut is disastrous for the farmer when it attacks a greao 
number of heads. Fields have been seen in which it had 
attacked one-fourth, one-half, or even two-thirds of the heads 
of grain. All the heads from the same root are smutted, 
sometimes all the grains of the same head are not, but such 
grains are always small, lank and withered. The smut is 
developed as well in a dry as in a rainy year, and as well in a 
dry as a moist soil. But it has been remarked that where it 
made the greatest ravages was always in little fertile grounds 
or such as had the year preceding produced a graminae affec- 
ted by smut. In the first instance the vegetative life being 
enfeebled, the mushroom met less resistance to its development. 
and in the second, the ground having retained the spores of 
the mushroom, of the preceding year, it already contained the 
elements of the malady. 

The remedy would be then, first, a lime-water soaking to 
rid the seed of the spores which may be attached to it, and, in 
the second place, not to sow grain upon any kind of cereal 
stubble which had been attacked by smut. 

It is not probable that the smut can be injurious to man by 
the use which he may make of the grain which shall have 
been attacked by it, because at the time of harvest the spores 
of the mushroom have in a great measure, left the grain, and 
because threshing and winnowing will remove the remainder. 
According to several authors, even the straw of smutty heads 



586 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

although of an inferior quality, would not be prejudicial to 
cattle fed upon it. 

Smut, so far as Known, has never been the cause of great 
damage to the Ohio farmer. It is believed that there have 
rarely been seen fields of wheat in which more than one-hun- 
dredth or one-sixtieth of the heads were attacked by smut. 
This is doubtless due to the vigorous vegetation which charac- 
terizes our climate, and perhaps also to the custom almost 
general in this country, to alternate fallowing and cultivation. 

A statement has found its way into the agricultural papers 
to the effect that seed wheat, threshed by a machine, is the 
cause of smut in wheat; and to prove the assertion, a case is 
given of seed sown which was threshed by a machine, and an 
adjoining land or two was sown with wheat threshed by hand ; 
that the result was that the machine-threshed was smutted, 
while the hand or flail-threshed was free from smut. The 
cause attributed is that the machine breaks the grains, and 
when sown the young plant has not sufficient nourishment to 
grow a perfcst plant, and hence is diseased. 

It is not true that a broken grain of wheat produces an 
unhealthy plant. If a plant is produced at all it will be a 
healthy plant — although it may not be a vigorous one, yet it 
will be perfect and healthy. If the chit or embryo is unin- 
jured it will grow, and when the amylaceous portion of the 
seed is exhausted, the young plant will find its nourishment 
in the soil. But if the amylaceous or starchy body is exhaus- 
ted before the plant is sufficiently developed to elaborate its 
own nutriment, it will die. If breaking the grain of wheat 
produces diseased plants, then by an unexceptionable analogy 
and parity of reasoning, cutting potatoes to plant should pro- 
duce diseased potatoes — a conclusion neither confirmed nor 
corroborated by experience. 

But it is very possible that the starch cells of the broken 
grains, having an organic vitality which is called into action 
by being sown, having to expend their energies in accordance 



TO PREVENT SMUT. 587 

with physiological laws, and having no embryo to nourish, 
may produce fungi, which by alternate generation may 
become smut, or some other specievS of uredo. It certainly is 
better policy, if not absolute economy, to sow seed which is 
not only perfect but is perfectly clean. 

We are indebted, says the Cincinnati Gazette, to Mr. R. Gr. 
Carmichael, Commission Merchant of this city, for the follow- 
ing valuable information with reference to the preparation of 
seed wheat. The process has been fully tested by farmers in 
England and Ireland, with entire success : 

u To Prevent Smut in Wheat. — Dissolve half a pound of 
sulphate of copper in three quarts of warm water. After the 
mixture has cooled, sprinkle it over two bushels of wheat, 
stirring it through until the whole be wet. Put it up in a 
heap, turning it occasionally for an hour, when it will be 
ready for sowing. Should wet weather or any other cause 
prevent its being sown immediately, spread it thin on a dry 
floor, giving it an occasional turning, and it will not suffer 
injury for weeks." 

The above was received from a very intelligent as well as 
extensive farmer and miller, who says in regard to it : 

" Where this has been carefully carried out, it has been 
found effectual in preventing smut in wheat. Of course, no 
man should sow smutty wheat, but even smutty wheat will 
produce grain perfectly free from smut, if it be carefully 
dressed as above. The reason that sulphate of copper pro- 
duces this result, is, that smut, being a fungus, which, when 
the balls are broken, attaches itself to the ends of the wheat, 
in many cases kills the wheat and grows in its place. The 
solution kills the fungus, but is not powerful enough to hurt 
the wheat. Care should be taken to prevent any animal from 
eating grain dressed with this preparation, as it is poisonous." 

The editor of the Gazette says the solution kills the smut, 
but is not powerful enough to hurt the wheat. That is much 
like asserting that arsenic in large doses will kill a tape worm, 
but not hurt the individual who is so unfortunate as to have 



588 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

a tape worm. The truth is, that whatever will kill smut will 
most assuredly kill the wheat. 

The editor very properly calls the smut a fungus, but he 
should know that the fungi are among the very lowest types 
of vegetable organizations, and are possessed of a vital tenac- 
ity exceedingly remarkable. The yeast which our good 
housewives use in leavening bread is a fungus, and we all 
know that it can be taken, when in the hight of its develop- 
ment and multiplication, reduced to a solid, kept at a temper- 
ature below zero, and so kept for months, but when surround- 
ed by the proper conditions, it immediately vegetates. The 
iwotococcus, or red snow, grows, developes, propagates, and 
flourishes, on the snows in the northern part of Greenland — 
it is a fungus. 

In our experiments, we have placed smut balls in a solution 
of nitrate of potash, dilute nitric acid, sulphate of iron, sul- 
phate of copper, sulphate of zinc, and even in dilute sulphuric 
acid, but the smut so treated invariably manifested undoubted 
signs of vitality when surrounded by proper conditions. 

We do doubt the assertion that W. Carmichael's plan above 
mentioned, produces uniformly clean wheat, or prevents smut 
in wheat — because even if his theory is true, it is almost im- 
possible to moisten every smut ball. The better plan is to 
make a solution of, say, one pound of blue-stone (sulphate of 
copper, or blue vitriol) to two gallons of water ; put the solu- 
tion in a tub or other wooden vessel ; then put in wheat to 
within two or three inches of the surface ; stir it well, and 
then let it stand an hour or longer ; at the expiration of this 
time, the light (diseased) grains of wheat, as well as the smut, 
will rise to the surface, and may be skimmed off; after the 
wheat has been taken out of the vessel, it should be spread 
on a dry floor, and thoroughly sprinkled with recently slaked 
lime — if necessary, it may remain in this state several days 
before sowing. 

The few smut balls that remain attached to the sound and 
healthy grains during the steeping process have become sufli- 



OTHER FUNGi. 



589 



ciently moist to germinate, and the lime forms a proper nidus, 
and nearly all trie smut balls will be found to have germina- 
ted in the course of forty-eight hours, but finding no sub- 
stance in proper condition to nourish them, they necessarily 
perish, and thus the wheat is prevented from being smutted, 
but not because the solution kills the smut and not the 
wheat. 

Before leaving this part of our subject, it is well to remark 
that very many fungi of different species infest the other 
members of the vegetable world almost without exception, 
and compose a large class of plants called cryptogamia, because 
the organs of reproduction are not distinguishable to the na- 
tural eye. The varieties of these fungi are very numerous, 
and it is impossible in the limits of this report to describe, or 
even name all of them, and our aim has been merely to point 
out those most important, on account of their extensive 
ravages. 




Fig. 39. 

Cladosporium Herbarium, Fig. 39, highly magnified, is 
a black fungus which sometimes gives a dingy appear- 
ance to whole fields of grain. It is often called mildew, 
but never attacks wheat except it has become already diseased. 
The appearance of the straw attacked by this fungus is shown 



590 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Fig. 38, slightly magnified, the dark patches indicating the 
diseased points, or those upon which the Cladosporium has 
formed lodgment. 

The Uredo rubigo already described, is figured in Fig. 27, 
highly magnified, and is one of the most important of the ure- 
dines, as its ravages are so great under favoring circumstances as 
to destroy one-half or two-thirds of a crop of grain, and some- 
times even more, and might, by extensive prevalence, be the 
cause of a serious scarcity of grain, and it well deserves the 
careful attention of the agriculturist. 

The Uredo fcetida also described, is figured in Fig. 28, 
highly magnified, and is also an important member of this 
destructive family of parasites, which have received their 
names from the peculiar effects upon the plant attacked. 
Uredo and Brand are derived from words in Latin and Ger- 
man, signifying burning, and corresponding to our words 
blast, blight, and the burnt or rusty appearance of the plants 
attacked by some of these has given rise to the English term 
rust. 

We have already adverted to the best means hitherto dis- 
covered of preventing wheat and other grains from being 
attacked by these destructive parasites. The following from 
an authentic source is not inappropriate. 

Preble County, Ohio, May 7, 1858. 

John H. Klippart, — Sir : — At the instance of our worthy Secretary 
of Preble County Agricultural Society, I give my personal observation 
as to the operations of the rust, one of the most ruinous diseases the 
crop is subject to. 

In 1842 I had a large field seriously affected by rust, and having read 
in the Genessee Farmer the necessity of early cutting, I put a hand- 
cradle to work and left — was absent a few days, and on my return found 
my hand had only cut a few dozen sheaves — avowed that it was so green 
he knew it would be worthless. I then procured hands and had the field 
cut, but too late for more than a half crop, while the portion cut at first 
was plump, and had well filled grains. 

In 1849 I had three fields of wheat of equal size — about the 20th to 
25th of June the rust made its appearance in its worst form. The 
cholera being in the country, hands were hard to procure. I, however, 



RUST. 591 

procured two cradlers, and set them to work in field No. 1 ; soon left for 
the day, and on my return home was vexed to find my foreman had 
abandoned the field, with the declaration that if I wasd — d fool enough 
to cut wheat so green, he was not. I explained and entreated, and 
finally got the field cut on Monday and Tuesday of the week, leaving the 
wheat in the swath unbound, until it partly cured in the sun before 
binding. Field No. 2 was left, partly to meet the views of my hands, 
and partly to mark the difference as an experiment, until Thursday and 
Friday, when it was cut and shocked. Field No. 3 having been put in 
by a tenant, and under his control, was left until the Monday following, 
though I urged him to have it harvested sooner. On Monday all hands 
were ready for the work, but on close inspection there was nothing but 
straw to cut, and hence the field was left unharvested. 

The Result. — Field No. 1, although it was the poorest set or stand 
by at least one-fourth, produced 12 measured bushels of wheat to the 
acre, weighing 56 lbs. to the bushel. No 2 yielded 8 bushels to the acre, 
weighing only 46 or 48 lbs. to the bushel, while the third field, fully 
equal to the second field in every respect, and the same kind of wheat 
(white chaff beardy) produced nothing. 

The rust in '49 produced general havoc in this county, thousands of 
acres having been entirely destroyed. And ignorance as to the time of 
cutting when the plant was thus afflicted, must have bled our county of 
at least $50,000, if not double that amount. For all who cut any portion 
of their grain in the incipient stages of the rust, received a fair yield, 
varying in quantity and quality as to time of cutting. Again, in 1857, 
last year, the rust made its appearance, but not so fatal in its conse- 
quences, but enough to do great damage. So soon as discovered I 
"pitched into - ' field No. 1, cutting and shocking the same day. The 
crop was so green I had to re-open the shocks and many of the sheaves 
to cure them, to keep them from molding, as I also did in field No. 1 in 
'49. Field No. 2 was left a week, being a later sown field. And again 
had a field, No. 3, in charge of a tenant who obstinately refused to cut 
till ripe. Result. — No. 1 produced 25 bushels to the acre: weight 64 lbs. 
to the bushel, and as full, flinty wheat as I ever saw — No. 2 being only 
a half set by "fly " and "freezing out," produced 10 bushels to the acre, 
and weighed 56; but in this field, and on the poorest point in it (clay 
land) I had well manured one acre in center of the field, and on which 
was at least 30 bushels of No. 1 wheat, neither the rust nor fly had 
affected it. No. 3 yields (though a good set) some 8 bushels to the acre, 
and the wheat so poor it could not be sold ; I am using it for feed. I 
think it a fixed fact, that the rust detracts or draws the substance from 
the grain. GEO. D. HENDRICKS. 



592 THE WHEAT PLANT. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

ANIMAL PARASITES AFFECTING THE WHEAT. 

The animal parasites affecting the different species of plants which 
compose the vegetable kingdom, are very numerous, and very widely 
different in their character, habits, mode of attack, and importance to 
man as destroyers of the fruits of his labors, in the garden, orchard, 
field, and vineyard. We can not advert to any except those most import- 
ant, on account of their extensive depredations, and can only recommend 
to all persons, whether directly or indirectly interested in the produc- 
tiveness of our agricultural labors, to contribute, so far as possible, to the 
general fund of information concerning these enemies of man's comfort 
and prosperity, by studying practically the subject of entomology, and 
recording their investigations in regard to any or all classes of insects 
which may come within their scope of observation. In this manner we 
may hope to gain such an acquaintance with the nature and habits of 
noxious insects as will enable us to counteract their deleterious influen- 
ces and restrain them within safe limits, if we should not succeed in 
entirely eradicating their species, and thus preventing the necessity of 
further watchfulness in regard to them. 

In the following descriptions we have not always been able to point 
out a remedy for the evil described, but it goes far toward discovering 
a remedy, when the disease has become fully known, and we may ven- 
ture to hope that a knowledge of the means of preventing the destruc- 
tive ravages of some, at least, of these terrible scourges, may soon be 
gained by some persons among the many whose interests they so greatly 
and injuriously affect. 

Agryp7ius Murinus (Mouse-colored click-beetle). — Is the parent of a 
wire-worm with a flat and indented tail: it is generally found under 
stones, and probably feeds on the roots of grasses. The beetle inhabits 
wheat fields, and sandy situations during the spring and summer. It is 
broad and flattish, clothed with short ashy hairs, marbled with brown; 
the two horns are short; the six legs are of a- pitch color, tips of the 



AGRIOTES, LINEATUS, OBSCURUS, AND SPUTATOR. 593 

thighs and feet tawny; the wing-cases conceal a pair of ample wings ; it 
is six lines long, and two and a half broad, or larger. 

Agriotes Linealus (Striped click-beetle). — The head and thorax are 
brown, clothed with cinereous down ; the wing-cases are of a fulvous 
color, with nine punctured lines, forming four brown stripes on each; 
the horns and legs are brighter brown. It is abundant in wheat fields, 
grass lands, hedges, under stones, etc., from March to July. 

A. Obscurus. — The obscure click-beetle is of the same size and form as 
the last, but it is of an uniform earthy-brown color. This beetle is 
abundant in fields, gardens, pastures, and woods, from April to July. 




< fcr,i 1 1 1 1 1 in ? 
1 

Fig. 40. Fig. 41. 

A. Sputator. — The pasture, or spitting click-beetle, is much smaller than 
A. obscurus; the head and thorax are black, thickly and distinctly dotted ; 
the latter often has the anterior margin and hinder angles — which form 
short, stout points — rusty; the wing-cases are light brown, with nine 
dotted lines on each; the entire surface is covered with ochreous down; 
the horns and legs are reddish brown, Fig. 40 (2 j, and magnified at Fig. 
41 (3); it is universally abundant, from the end of April to the beginning 
of July, in wheat fields, hedges, and pastures, especially after floods. These 
four elators, or click-beetles, are the parents of the true " wire-worms," 
whose history will be more fully given under that head. Their econo- 
my is now pretty well understood ; the eggs appear to be laid close to 
the plants destined to support the young maggots, when they hatch ; the 
larva? live upon various roots, entering the stems occasionally, and 
forming burrows in the soil. 

They must be exceedingly minute when first hatched; and as the dif- 
ferent click -beetles vary in size, their wire- worms, no doubt, vary also 

The small one, Fig. 40 (1 ), we consider to be the offspring of A 
sputator (2) and of A. lineatus. When full grown, the wire-worms form 
a cell deep in the earth, and change to pupae. At this period of its 
existence, it is in a torpid state, and lies buried, as it were, in a 
tomb, until the appointed time, when the spring sun warms the earth, 
and all the limbs being now perfected, the beetle bursts its shroud. 
50 



594 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




Fig. 42. 



forces its tomb of earth, and makes its way to the surface, to dry and 
expand its wings and limbs, when it is again prepared to generate its 
species. The click-beetles have the power of springing up when laid on 
their backs. 

Anisoplia Agricola ( Field Chafer), is a small species of cock-chafer, 
which does considerable mischief to wheat and rye when they are in the 
ear, by congregating upon the milky grain, and eating out the contents. 

This beetle is abund- 
ant in France and Ger- 
many, but it is very 
rare in England ; it is 
of a bottle-green color, 
the nose is narrowed 
and curved up; the 
horns are short, ter- 
minating by a little 
club cleft into three 
lobes ; the wing-cases 
are shorter than the 
body, either ochreous, 
with a blackish square spot at the base, a splashed line across the middle, 
and the margin irregularly black ; or they are bottle-green, with ochreous 
spots; Fig. 42 (4) — (5), the natural length; the six legs are very strong, 
spurred, and terminated by unequal, acute claws. 

A. Horticola (Garden Chafer, or May-bug), is a similar insect, and 
very abundant in this country. It flies well, and often covers the white 
thorn hedges and wheat, making also sad ravages in gardens in May and 
June, by destroying the flowers and leaves of roses, apples, peaches, etc., 
feeding upon the parts of fructification, and riddling the foliage. It is 
of a very glossy green, but the wing-cases are of a tawny color. Fig. 42 
(1) — (2), the same magnified. The female beetle enters the earth to lay 
her eggs, and is thus the parent of a maggot, Fig. 42 (3), which is very 
destructive in pasture lands, feeding upon the roots of the grass, causing 
large patches to wither, and rendering the turf spongy, and often unpro- 
ductive to a great extent. These grubs, as they are called, are of an 
ochreous white color, covered with rusty hairs; the head is shining and 
deep ochreous, jaws strong and black at their tips; the six pectoral legs 
are longisb, and the extremity of the body is soft and of a lead color. 
They are feeding for many months before they arrive at maturity, when 
they retire a considerable depth, to form earthen cells and undergo their 
transformations — first into a pupa, then into the perfect beetle. 

Sparrows will gorge themselves with the beetles ; blackbirds and 



APHIS GRANAH1A. 



595 



thrushes pick them up as they emerge from the soil, and starlings 
turn up the loosened turf to feed upon the maggots. 





Fig. 4:5. 



Fig. 44. 



Aphis Granaria (Wheat Plant Louse), inhabits corn crops, having been 
observed upon barley and oats, as well as upon wheat. In July and 
August it is sometimes abundant on the ears of wheat, sucking the 
stem and impoverishing the grain. The male is green, Fig. 43 (1) — (2), 
natural dimension — horns very long and black ; eyes and three ocelli 
black ; disc of trunk dark ; tubes slender, longish, and black ; nervures 
of wings pale-brown; terminal cell semi-heart shaped; stigma long 
and green ; hinder legs very long ; thighs — excepting the base, tips of 
shanks and feet — black. Females often apterous (wingless), dull orange; 
horns, excepting the base, eyes, and abdominal tubes (which are stouter 
than in the winged specimens), black ; legs blackish, anterior thighs, 
and base of tibia?, more or less ochreous. 





Fig. Fig. 4(3. 

Numbers of the apterous females are often seen dead, and of a taw.iv 
or black color, upon the ears of wheat; having been punctured by a para- 
sitic fly, named Aphidius avemc, Fig. 45 (2) — (1), the natural size, 
which escapes when it hatches by forcing open a lid at the under side 
of the body. Ephedrus plagiator. Fig. 46 (7) — (8), natural dimension* 



596 



THE WHEAT PLANT, 



is a similar parasite, bred from the dead females, which turn black 
when punctured, as shown at (3) — (4), Fig. 44, being the natural size. 




Fig. 47.* 

A. Zecc (Indian-corn-plant louse), appeared in August, in groups 
beneath the leaves of some maize grown in this country ; but they dis- 
appeared about the middle of September, when the cold nights set in. 
It is a pretty species, very distinct from any of the others, and is proba- 
bly abundant in the southern countries of Europe, where the maize is 
regularly cultivated. First the apterous females appeared, Fig. 47 (5) — 
(6), natural size, with the head, collar, base of trunk and of horns ochreous; 
the other joints brown; eyes black; the back dark-green, marbled with 
a paler tint; extremity of body ros} r ; tubes rather short and far apart; 
legs ochreous and hairy ; feet and tips of shanks brown. They were 
surrounded by little groups of their offspring, of a dark-green color ; 
afterward a few winged specimens appeared, Fig. 47 (7) — (8), natural ex- 
panse; they arc of a pale, rosy tint, variegated with green; the long, 
slender tubes, fine horns, and legs, are. whitish ; feet, tips of thighs, and 
shanks, dusky; nervures of the wings very pale; stigma pale-green or 
colorless. 

Athous Longicollis (Long-necked click-beetle), is often found in wheat 
fields in spring and summer, and is produced from a wire-worm ; but 
whether it is injurious to the crops, has not been discovered. Tbe male 
is narrow, of a fulvous color, the head and trunk are black and punc- 
tured; the latter is longish, with the margins rusty; the scutle and 



'-Fig. 47 — 1, 2, 3, and 4, is the A. humuli, or hop-beetle, erroneously introduced by 
the engraver. 



BEMBIDIUM. 



597 



breast are blackish ; the wing-cases have eighteen lines of dots ; and the 
outer margin is brown; beneath them is an ample pair of wings; 
length four and one-fourth lines. The female is broader, larger, and 
varies in color, from an uniform brown to an ochreous chestnut tint. A. 
niger (black click-beetle) is polished, black-clothed, with shining yellow 
hairs. It is elliptical, finely and not thickly punctured ; there are 
eighteen fine furrows drawn down the back of the wing-cases, which 
cover Avings for flight;, length half an inch. It is very abundant in 
May and June in cornfields, meadows, and hedges ; the wire-worm is 
said to live in very rotten horse muck. 

A. Ruficaudis (Red-tailed click-beetle), is a species so abundant in 
cornfields, from April to July, that its wire-worm is no doubt very de- 
structive, and it is supposed to resemble those of Agriotes lineatus, and 
A. obscurus, except that it is larger. The beetle is downy, with short 
ochreous hairs; the head and trunk are black, and very thickly punc- 
tured; the wing-cases are hazel-brown, with eighteen punctured furrows; 
the wings beneath are ample, and it is often seen flying ; the legs and 
under sides are reddish-brown, the trunk and breast darker, often 
blackish ; it is six lines long. 




Fig. 48. 
Bembidium. — A genus of minute beetles. A small larva has been de- 
tected doing considerable mischief to wheat crops, which is supposed 
to be the offspring of a Bembidium. or of a Staphylinus. It is a little 
creature, Fig. 48 (1), with strong jaws; minute horns and eyes; six 
hairy, jointed legs, with simple claws ; the tail is tubular, and furnished 
with two jointed horns; and there are four series of spines down the 
back and sides; seen in (2) when the insect is magnified. In October 
these larvoe have done great injury; the young wheat plants dying off 
fast, owing to their cutting round the outside sheaths of the stem (3), 
about an inch below the surface of the soil, to feed, it is supposed, upon 



598 



THE WHEAT PLANT 



the root and tender straw. On being disturbed, they run into a hole 
previously formed by them in the husk of the seed wheat (4). One- 
fifth of a crop has been destroyed by these animals in Suffolk. 




Cephus Pygmceus (the Corn Saw 
Fly), is often not uncommon in 
our cornfields, and abounds on 
umbelliferous flowers, and the 
long grass which springs up on 
the surrounding banks in June, 
and early in July. The females, 
Fig. 49 (1), natural dimensions 
(2), which are most abundant, 
lay their eggs in the stems of rye 
and wheat, either below the first 
joint, or just under the ear. The 
young maggot consumes the in- 
side of the straw, ascending and 
sometimes perforating all the 
|||\ knots before it is fully grown, 
when it descends to the base of 
the straw and cuts it down level 
with the ground at harvest time ; 
It immediately incloses itself in a ti'anspa- 
rent case within the stump of straw, a little below the surface, and closes 
its cell with excrement and bits of food. 

There it rests secure through the winters, and in March it changes 
to a pupa, and is transformed to a saw fly, occasionally as early as 
April. The maggots (4) magnified at (5) are fat, wrinkled, and yellow, 
with a darker head. The flies are shining black, with a yellow mem- 
brane on the neck and at the base of the abdomen, across which are two 
yellow rings and a spot in the male ; the tip is also yellow, as well as 
the mouth, hips, inside of thighs, shanks, and feet ; inside of hinder 
shanks and feet brown. Female larger ; two horns shorter and stouter , 
four wings smoky ; face black ; abdomen compressed, with a short black 
oviduct at the apex; hips and thighs black, tips of the latter yellow (1). 
A parasitic ichneumon, called Pachymesus calistrator (6), natural 
dimensions (7), infests the larvse of the Cephus. 

No doubt clover crops encourage the wire worms, and clean fallows 
diminish their numbers; and various checks to their increase may be 
called to our aid in the cultivation of land, such as hard rolling after a 
top dressing of lime, mixing spirits of tar, gas. lime, nitrate of soda, or 



Fig. 49. 
the maggot in its case (3) 



MIDGE OR VELLOW WEEVIL. 599 

rape cake, with the soil. A crop of white mustard or woad it is sup- 
posed, will drive them away, and mowing corn is believed, by some agri- 
culturists, to banish them. If artificial means be resorted to for their 
extirpation, it has been proved that hand picking, tedious as it may 
seem, is the most effectual, and not a very expensive mode of clearing 
the land of these pests. 

A little fly (Proctotrupes viator) insinuates itself among the loose 
earth, to deposit its eggs in wire worms, and other subterraneous larvoe, 
and does considerable service ; but it is on birds the farmers must depend 
for assistance. 

The crows, lap-wings, gulls, starlings, pheasants, partridges, black 
birds, thrushes, wagtails, and robins, can all make a meal of wire worms, 
and even the poor mole is most serviceable in this respect. 

Cecidomyia Tritici (the Midge or Red Weevil) — Is an insect belonging to 
the same genus as the Hessian fly, and at the same time that the family 
resemblance is quite apparent there are specific differences in the appear- 
ance and habits of the Hessian fly and the midge, which separate these 
two members of the same family into quite distinct species, and ren- 
ders separate description of these two exceedingly injurious insects 
necessary. 

The Cecidomyia tritici is ascertained to be the true cause of the fail- 
ure, to such a great extent, of the wheat crop in Ohio during the past 
few years; and it has, consequently, attracted unusual attention from 
farmers, where the wheat crop has been found greatly deficient in well- 
developed grains, on account of the ravages of this insect, which causes 
an abortion of many of the grains in a head attacked by it, leaving the 
grains which were not affected to mature healthily. This infertility of 
part of the glumes upon a head of wheat was formerly supposed to be due 
to atmospheric influences entirely ; but this has not been a well-ascer- 
tained cause, while the influences of the midge are well established as a 
definite cause of a partial abortion of the wheat heads, by destroying the 
fertility of all the glumes upon which it has made its attack. This asser- 
tion has been verified by very extensive observations in many depart- 
ments of France. 

To describe this insect, heretofore so little known, and to note its char- 
acter and ravages, and means of prevention, if such there be, is an import- 
ant entomological labor, and a careful examination of the whole question 
involved is of vast importance to every individual, as upon the existence 
or non-existence of the larva) of this parasite in our wheat fields, where 
they may be found within the glumes about the time of flowering, de- 
pends much human comfort or misery, small as the insect is. And men 
whose modes of life present them with favorable opportunities for inves- 



600 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



ligation of these matters of interest, should improve their opportunities 
for the advantage of themselves and fellow-beings. 

The Cecidomyia tritici (improperly named wheat weevil by some persons; 
this last name is more appropriately applied to the Calandra granaria, 
hereafter to be described), is a small yellow fly, commonly called " The 
Midge,'' which makes its appearance about the middle of June, and caD 
De met with until the middle of July. 





Pia. 50. Fig. " ': 

The female Cecidomyia tritici much enlarged,— the 
figure to the right is a view of the ovipositor mag- 
nified. 
Fig. 51. 

Toward sunset they leave the lower part of the wheat stalks upon 
which they had taken shelter during the day, and may be see in myriads 
about the flowering time of wheat, Avhen they sally forth during the early 
part of the evenings to deposit their eggs in the glumes of the wheat. 
just before it blooms. They remain on the wheat heads during the night; 
and sometimes two or three of them may be found depositing their eggs 
upon the same glume. They resemble common gnats somewhat in ap- 
pearain-c, and are classified with them in entomological descriptions 
The body is less than one-twelfth of an inch long, of a citron yellow, or 
sometimes inclined to orange. The eyes are proportionately very large, 
and jet black ; the wings are long and transparent. The female has a long 
ovipositor, about the size of the thread of the silk-Worm (see Fig. 52), 
which she thrusts into the same place between the glumes of the spike- 



DEVELOPMENT OF THE MIDGE. 



601 




let as that, from which the wheat grain is to spring (see annexed Fig. 
51), where the eggs are sheltered, hatched, and nourished. This deposit 
begins when the wheat head emerges from its sheath of leaves, and is 
terminated when the head is in bloom; after which they never deposit 
their eggs, as the grain will be far too advanced to furnish the larvse 
their nutrition if deposited after flowering. Tardily flowering heads still 
continue to be attacked, and thus the process of deposit continues from 
about the middle of June until in July. 

The larvae, when hatched, are white, but soon become yellow, and have 
been found in numbers from fifteen to twenty upon a single kernel 
of wheat, from which they derive their nourishment, and thus prevent 
the development of the grain upon which they feed. If the number of 
larvae in a single glume be large, ten or more, the material for 
the formation of the grain will be entirely absorbed ; but if 
only a small number be present, they merely divide the nutri- 
tious materials with the grain, which is then partly developed, 
as seen in the figure of a defective grain (see Fig. 53). They 
begin their injurious work when the grain is in the formative 
state, and continue it until the milk hardens, and they produce 
a livid, spotted, or faded appearance of the glumes infested by Fig. 53. 
them ; but this change of appearance becomes less 
marked as the head ripens, although the injured 
glumes turn yellow more rapidly than the healthy 
ones, as the natural humidity of a perfectly-formed 
grain is wanting to delay the drying of the glume. 
The engraving (Fig. 54) shows the larvae surround- 
ing the young grain. 

The larva?, to attain their perfect development, 
must reach and take shelter in the earth; and to 
do this, they bend themselves into an arc, and. like 
the so-called skippers in a cheese, spring out and ' 

fall to the ground. Some of the larvae remain in the heads, as exceptions 
to the rule, and attain a perfect development the following year after 
having wintered in the barn. Those which reach the earth, which they 
do just before or at the time of harvest, seek shelter near the roots of 
the wheat stalk, and, burying themselves to a slight depth be- 
neath the surface, lie dormant until the next spring, when they assume 
the pupa, then the imago, and lastly the perfect form, about the middle 
of June, as already stated, and may then be found resting on the ground 
during the day, whence they soar away, like their progenitors of the 
preceding year, to propagate and destroy. When they greatly increase 
in any one locality, the parasites which feed upon them increase in a like 

51 




602 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

or even greater ratio, and soon diminish the progeny to a safe limit 
again, and for the next few years they are not likely to do much harm, 
while some section not before, or at the time infested by them, be- 
comes their field of destructive operation until their enemies there de- 
stroy them, and thus they alternately attack and leave unmolested 
difi'erent regious at different times, and those places not yet visited by 
it are more liable to destructive attacks in the few coming years than 
those where the scourge has already prevailed greatly, and where it must 
soon fall a victim to its natural and inveterate enemies. 

If the blighted appearance of a wheat field caused by the cecidomyia, 
were caused, as is supposed, by the weathei - , then there would be no rem- 
edy, and no means of predicting a failure of the crops ; but such failure 
may be foretold by observing the numbers of the insects engaged in 
depositing their eggs, or a little later by examining the wheat heads to 
ascertain the prevalence of the larvae. To do this, take a few heads 
of wheat at random, from a field, count the number of sound and 
affected grains, and the average of the crop may be easily calculated. 
The loss in some departments of France amounted in some years to 
one-eighth, then one-seventh, then one-half of the entire crop, particu- 
larly in early sown wheat, which the cecidomyia attacked and destroyed, 
and were then powerless to do further harm to late flowering wheat, as 
the eggs being once deposited they are done with their labor prelimi- 
nary to the damage they cause. 

Parasites of the Cecidomyia. — Simultaneously with the appearance of 
the yellow insect called midge, appears another quite different, being 
easily distinguished from it, although of nearly the same size, by being 
entirely black, having four colored legs, and being seen during the 
eutire day. This insect is not, as has been thought, an enemy, but is a 
protector of the wheat-field, being the natural enemy of the cecidomyia, 
upon the progeny of which its young are fed, and without which our 
fields would soon cease to yield us a crop of wheat at all. It accom- 
plishes its work of destroying the eggs of the cecidomyia by thrusting 
its long lance-shaped ovipositor through the glumes of the grain, and 
depositing its eggs within those of the midge; both insects being often 
found accomplishing their distinct missions at the same time upon the 
same ear of wheat; and although the destruction of the larvae of the 
cecidomyia does not save the wheat crop of the current year, as these 
larvae reach a development at the expense of the sap destined for the 
grain, yet they then perish, while the larvae of the parasite living upon 
them give origin to an insect in their stead not injurious to succeed- 
ing crops. If, then, the cecidomyia be abundant and the parasites few 
in number one year, the next crop will be very meager, but if the para- 



HOW TO ESCAPE THE RAVAGES OF THE " FLY." 603 

sites be very numerous, then the cecidomyia will be nearly extermi- 
nated, and seek a new section where it may prevail, as it usually does 
in one place, for two or three years, and then fall again before the 
increasing numerical strength of its deadly enemy.* 

Means of Destroying the Cecidomyia, or providing against its ravages. — 
The parasite mentioned we regard as the greatest destructor of the 
midge, besides which there are at least two others less common, and 
there is another auxiliary found in a small spider who spreads his net 
for the midge near the roots of the wheat stalk. But we should not 
depend upon these means alone to cure the evil where its exists, or pre- 
vent its invasion of new territory. The ravages of the insect are very 
unequally great in different years; and this is owing, doubtless, to some 
definite cause or set of causes, which we should endeavor to learn, and 
which we might, perhaps, modify to our great advantage. And all 
the habits and transformations of the insect and attending circumstances 
being carefully noted may lead us to a knowledge of these causes. 

When the eggs are deposited in the glume we can do nothing for 
the present harvest, but a preventive of future evil may be learned per- 
haps, from entomologists. When the larvte reach the ground they pene- 
trate only to a short depth, and changing into a chrysalis state lie there 
during the winter, unharmed by the frosts ; but a deep plowing would 
turn them so far under that they would mostly perish, and then the 
wheat crop might be drilled in so shallow as not to turn them up again. 
Again, entomologists know that a hot sun and dry atmosphere are fatal 
to chrysalides, and a repeated light harrowing of the ground which 
contains these larvae would expose vast numbers of them to this cause 
of destruction. Mineral manures might also be found very efficacious 
as a means of their destruction. Mr. Paul Theward, of France, has 
succeeded in destroying the Eumople or vine-hopper by an application 
of oil cake, of colza and rape-seed powdered, we believe, and prepared 
in a particular manner, but not heated in its preparation above 212° of 
Fahrenheit. Would not this prove an efficacious remedy for the midge ? 



* D:\ Asa Fitch, State Entomologist of the State of New York, is of the opinion that 
this parasite (Plntygaster punctiger) has not yet reached America. 

I have failed to find them myself, but have reason to Ixdieve that they are in Ohio. 
This belief is based upon the following ascertained facts : In a circular of queries, issued 
from this office, soliciting statistical and other agricultural information, addressed to 
County Agricultural Societies, was the following question : 

" Does the midge appear to increase in numbers for three or four yearn, and thru suddenly 
disappear? " To which forty counties answered in the affirmative. In the same circular 
was the question, " What it color of, and how many wings has the insect which. y>u ca'1 th„, 
midge ? " Several counties replied "color, black — wings, four — two large and two small." 
Several Replied, "steel blue wings." 



604 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Burning the stubble fields destroys vast, numbers of the larva;. Would 
not lime, oil-cake as mentioned above, or other substances which 
would act. in the double capacity of a manure and a poison to the in- 
sect be found beneficial, if applied at the time they emerge from the 
ground, — which, as is well known, takes place about the middle of June, — 
by destroying them before they deposited any of their eggs. 

As the cecidomyia is ephemeral in its nature, being developed to the 
perfect state only to deposit its eggs and die, one means of preventing 
its ravages is to hasten the growth of wheat so as to pass the stage 
of growth at which the midge attacks it, and it then becomes a harm- 
less insect. Another means recommended in France is to fish for them 
with fly nets, such as used by entomologists in making their collec- 
tions; and vast numbers might thus be caught and destroyed. Evening 
is the time for a successful application of this means. Being nocturnal 
in their habits they might be attracted like other nocturnal insects, 
and thousands of them be destroyed by torches carried through the 
fields. Lime sprinkled upon the wheat just as the heads were emerg- 
ing from their sheaths/* and fumigations by means of fires around the 
fields, impregnated with materials to produce an offensive and dense 
smoke have been tried with some success. Frequent changes of the 
time of seeding may be found very advantageous, as by this means the 
ravages of cecidomyia may be measurably prevented, by bringing the 
flowering time of the grain to a season too early, or too late for the 
midge. Each locality must regulate this change of seed-time accord- 
ing to the season of the attack by the midge in such district, which 
season should be carefully ascertained, and then late or early sowing, 
or sowing late or early ripening wheat, will anticipate or retard the 
cecidomyia and prevent its successful attack. 

There are some important considerations as to the time when the 
cecidomyia should be destroyed, whether as a perfect insect, larva, or 
pupa; and it appears reasonable, that when the parasites of the midge 
are abundant, the larva; should not be destroyed, as the vast ma- 
jority destroyed really contain the larvae of its worst enemy and the 
agriculturist's best auxiliary. So that destroying the larva does more 
harm than good. But if the parasite has not yet increased to such a 
number as to make their preservation a matter of importance, then 
destroy the larvae as thoroughly as possible. This remark applies also 
to caterpillars, and other noxious insects. 

Omitting the culture of wheat throughout an infected district for one 



* This has been practiced in several instances which have come to my knowledge, but 
I believe in every instance the man that sprinkled the lime died from the effects of it. 



DESCRIPTION OP THE MIDGE. 605 

or two years, and cultivating instead some other crop, is a safe and cer- 
tain remedy, and one which, in case of necessity, may, and, in all proba- 
bility, must be practiced. Variety of wheat has but little directly to 
do with prevention, as all varieties are subject to attacks by this insect; 
but a change from late to early varieties may, as already mentioned, be 
found sometimes advantageous. 

History of the Cecidomyia. — We have only room to glance at the his- 
tory of this important insect, which has not been satisfactorily described 
and classified by naturalists until at a comparative recent date. In 
France, until within a few years, it has been but rarely observed, al- 
though known in Germany, Switzerland, etc., somewhat earlier. But 
in these countries it has become only too well known since 1846. In 
England it was known and described as early as 1771, by Gallet, as one 
of the worst enemies of the wheat field. In that country its ravages 
were estimated at a loss equal to $100,000 in certain counties in 1827 ; 
$150,000 in 1828; and $180,000 in 1829: and Scotland and Ireland 
were not exempt from it. It was observed in the United States in 1820, 
and in 1828, 1829, and in 1832, it attracted particular attention by its 
terrible ravages. In the State of Maine alone it has caused a loss of a 
million of dollars in a single year; and wherever it has prevailed its 
destructive powers are almost beyond calculation ; there are but few 
sections in the Union where wheat is cultivated which have not been 
visited by it, in greater or less numbers. 

Authors differ somewhat concerning the habits of this insect, the 
number of larvae deposited in a single grain or upon a single head, etc. ; 
but this is because observations have not been equally carefully con- 
ducted, or perhaps so long continued by some as by others. Some 
suppose the larvae to wait until a damp season to reach the ground by 
crawling down the stalk; others have observed its skipper-like action ; 
and these rightly conclude that it is not the state of the weather but 
the stage of development which determines their descent. Some lay 
great stress upon the destruction of the sweepings of barn floors to de- 
stroy the larvae, as they suppose that they continue in the wheat until 
threshed. This measure is certainly proper when many larvaa are thus 
found, but they do not thus remain in the wheat, other than as excep- 
tions to the rule, because as a general thing they descend about the time 
the harvest is ripe, as already mentioned. Asa Fitch says they deposit 
from six to ten eggs upon a single grain, and sometimes attack other 
graminae besides wheat; but the French authorities we have consulted 
do not record such an observation, although they agree with him as to 
the number of eggs. 

The name of the insect is a matter of importance, as by establishing 



606 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



one name definitely in its entomological description, confusion will be 
avoided. Cecidomyia tritici seems to be a fitting appellation. 

The female Cecidomyia is about two millimetres long. Eyes black, 
occupying more than two-thirds of the head, separated by a yellowish 
line; thorax and abdomen of a lemon yellow, sometimes orange. The 
abdomen is terminated by a tractile ovipositor as long as the body, 
not visible in the ordinary state of the insect (Fig. 50). Claws 
long, yellowish. Antennas composed of elongated joints, strung together 
like beads, upon a very fine connecting filameut. These joints are flat- 

r tened and somewhat hour-glass 

shaped, twelve in number, with- 
out counting the joint of attach- 
ment, these first being the 
longest, as though composed of 
two soldered together; they are 
armed with long hairs. The 
wings are transparent and cili- 
ated, particularly at the borders. 
Figs. 50 and 55 give a good rep- 
resentation of their appear- 
ance. A question of import- 
ance, in the description of this 
insect, yet undetermined, is 
whether there be a little trans- 
verse nervure, besides the lon- 
gitudinal ones, connecting the 
Male Cecidomyia," magnified. post-costal nervure to the side? 

This question is important, because upon its answer may depend a 
distinction of varieties, or species, and hence differences of habit and 
mode of prevention, etc., etc. M. Bazin, a French authority consulted 
by us, is of opinion that, in his country, such transverse nervure 
exists, and is best marked in the male (Fig. 55). 

The male cecidomyia is more rare than the female, and is distinguished 
by a shorter body, absence of the ovipositor, and less intense color. 
The thorax and abdomen are yellow-brown; wings slightly tinged with 
black, and have the nervures more distinctly visible. The antennas dif- 
fer ; the joints are less elongated, spheroidal, thirteen in number, the 
first one in the female seeming to be made up of two joined into one. 
In the description of the male there are also differences among author- 
ities, for the reason before stated, and further observations are required 
to make the characteristics of this insect well known. 

Parasites of the Cecidomyia Tritici. — We have said that several kinds 




PLATYGASTEB PUNCTIOER. 



607 




of parasites attack the Cecidomyia tritici. One of them found as entirely 
in an exceptional state, is the Macroglenes penetrans. As to the other 
two Hymenoptera, we are under obligation for their determination, to 
the extreme politeness of Dr. Sichel, president of the Entomological 
Society of France, distinguished alike as an entomologist and as a 
physician. 

Note of Dr. Sichel upon the Hymenopterous Parasites of the Cecidomyia 
tritici, arranged by M. C. Bazin. 

The small hymenopterous parasites of the Cetiidomyia tritici, both 
belong to the family of Oxyures of Latreille, 
or the Proctotrnpidcs of Stephens and of M. 
Westwood, sub-family of the Platygasterides, 
of M, V> r est\vood, genus Plaiygaster of La- 
treille. 

The first of these little insects, that which 

M. Bazin has found so numerous that he 

regards them as existing in myriads, is the 

Plaiygaster punctiger, Fig. 56. Nees d'Esen- 

beck ( Hymenopt, Ichneumonibus, affin, II., 

p. 307, No. 15). It belongs, at present, 

to the genus lnoslemma of M. "Walker, a ge- " 

, . , ,. . . , , ■ , , The Platyoaster Punctiger. 

nus which is distinguished by the submar- „ , . 

ginal nerve terminated at its extremity by a b T h e ovipositor highly magni- 

little disk, a character perfectly expressed fied. 

(Fig. 56). This figure is, in general, con _ c The extreme end of the oviposi- 

i • i-ixi -i i tor magnified, 

formed to the insect which 1 have placed 

under the microscope, and to the description given of it by M. Nees. 

M. Nees assigns very hesitatingly six articulations to the antennae, 
but examination under the microscope, leaves no doubt upon this point. 
After the scape, very long and somewhat large at its extremity, comes 
a pedicel, short and somewhat large, then four very small joints, and 
then four other very large, which form the club; but in the individ- 
uals which are very old and dry, which I have under my eyes, the 
limits of the joints are more frequently indistinct, and recognizable 
only by a very strong enlargement; which explains to me the hesitation 
of M. Nees. M. Fcerster, according to a letter communicated by M. 
Bazin, has made of this species the type of a new genus, which he calls 
Isostazius ; as he does not indicate the essential characters of this genus, 
and as I have not at present at my command any other species of the 
genus Inostemma, I can not decide as to the correctness of this new 
generic distinction. 




608 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The second of these little hymenoptera is the Platyg aster scutellaris, 
Nees. Although M. Bazin has only transmitted to me three individuals, 
very dry, which I have not had time to soften and stretch out, they 
suffice perfectly to display the specific characters : reddish or russet feet, 
antennae almost entirely russet, having a club somewhat perfoliated of 
four joints, like Fig. 57, the shield, or corrica pro- 
longed into a long spine, very broad at its base, and 
very pointed at its posterior extremity. The three 
individuals which I have under observation appear to 
be females, but I can not pronounce with certainty in 
reference to this. I intend examining anew, with more 
exactness, these two parasites, during the coming sum- 
mer, when M. Bazin shall have furnished me more 
recent and numerous individuals. 

As regards the insects which are represented in Figs. 
Fig. 57. gg an( j ^ an( j f w hich there has been transmitted me 

an abdomen, dried and deprived of legs and wings, and partly covered 
by a viscid matter, I have postponed an examination of it until I shall 
have fresh and entire individuals. It is the abdomen of the Plalygaster 
inserans of Mr. Curtis, according to the drawing of that author, that, is 
of the female Inostemma punctiger of Nees; for M. M. Bazin and Mi- 
queaux, found it, before the mutilation of the individual, conformed to 
Fig. 56. It has been impossible for me to resolve this question myself, 
hitherto, as I neither have fresh individuals of the female of this insect 
having the sting protruding, nor yet the work of Mr. Curtis. 

SICHEL, M. D. 
Paris, April 20, 1856. 

CECIDOMYIA DESTRUCTOR, OR THE HESSIAN FLY. 

When so much has been ably and carefully written in reference to the 
Hessian fly, all that can be done is to collect and arrange the separate 
items of information upon this interesting topic, as nothing new has 
recently been discovered in regard to it, and we can only hope to 
present the present state of knowledge in a clear and comprehensive 
manner. 

The Hessian fly seems to have been an immigrant into this country 
from Europe, where it was known and described long before it com- 
menced its ravages on this side of the Atlantic, where it first made its 
appearance in the year 1776, and is supposed to have been brought over 
in the straw used by the Hessian allies of the British troops, hence its 
common name in this country. At all events it was first noticed in 



C. DESTRUCTOR, OR HESSIAN FLY. 609 

Long Island 82 years ago, and traveled inland at the rate of twenty 
miles annually, until it is now known as far west as Iowa and Minne- 
sota, where wheat is cultivated. 

From the most reliable information we are able to obtain, the Hessian 
fly makes an attack upon particular districts, some of them very remote, 
and, after continuing its ravages for two or three years, it disappears in 
that district for a number of years, and then re-appears; but it has 
rarely, if ever, attacked simultaneously the whole country in any one 
season, and there have been but comparatively few years in which it has 
not been injuriously abundant in some section or other of the United 
States. Wherever it has been very destructive, late sowing has seemed 
to have a great tendency to restrain and prevent its increase. 

The insect, after having been called by various appellations, has at 
last received generally, the popular name of Hessian Fly, or The Fly, 
and its now well established scientific designation of Cecidomyia 
destructor, and has been very frequently described by different authors 
with sufficient accuracy to make it recognizable by almost any of these 
descriptions, among which, that by the late Dr. Harris, is perhaps as 
accurate and reliable as any, while the following abstract of the descrip- 
tion by Dr. Asa Fitch, of the male and female fly is so authentic that we 
can not do better than give this as the standard of the descriptions of the 
Cecidomyia destructor. 

The head and thorax of female, Fig. 58, (2)-(2), magnified and natural 
size, are black. The antennae are about half as long as the body, and 
composed of sixteen joints, each of a cylindricoval form, the length being 
about double the diameter; each joint is clothed with a number of hairs, 
surrounding it in a whorl. The joints are separated from each other 
by very short translucent filaments, having a diameter about one third 
as great as the joints themselves. The thorax is oval and black ; the 
poisers are dusky ; the abdomen is of a dark color above, more or less 
widely marked at the sutures (joints) with tawny, fulvous lines, and 
furnished with numerous fine blackish hairs. The ovipositor is rose- 
red. The wings are slightly dusky. The legs are pallid brown, the 
tarsi black. The several pairs of legs equal each other in length, being 
about one-fifth of an inch long when extended; of which length, the 
tarsus embraces one-half. Short basal joint indistinct. 

Themale, Fig. 58, (l)-(l), natural size and magnified. The antennre are 
three-fourths the length of the body. The abdomen consists of seven 
joints besides the terminal one, which consists of a transversely oval 
joint, giving off two robust processes, armed with incurved hooks at 
the tips. In the living specimen the abdomen is of a brownish-black 
color, more or less widely marked at the sutures with pallid fulvous or 






610 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



smoky whitish lines. In all other points the male coincides with the 
female in its character. 







Fig. 58. 

Fig. 58. Cecidomyia Destructor (Hessian Fly). 1. C. destructor (male) natural sizv 
and magnified. 2. C. destructor (female) natural size and magnified. '.',. larva in fla> 
" seed " state. 4. dorsal view of the larva* magnified. 5. ventral view of the larvae mag 
nified. 6. lateral view of the larvaj magnified. 7. pupa. 8. Base of leaf sheath swollen 
from worms having lain under it and perforated hy parasites coming from these worms. 
9. Place where the larva 1 are found in autumn, a. stalk of wheat attacked hy the fly 
b. c. healthy wheat plant. 

The female deposits her eggs upon the young wheat leaves in Septem- 
ber and May, between the minute ridges of the blade. They appear as 
minute reddish spots, and are cylindrical in shape, being about one- 
fiftieth of an inch in length, and one-two-hundred and fiftieth in 
width. 

The eggs laid in the autumn hatch in a week, if the weather be warm, 
or two or three weeks if cold and unfavorable, and produce white mag- 
gots, which pass down the leaf, between the sheath and stein, until it 
reaches the first joint or crown, and remains fixed upon the stem, head 
downward. Fig. 58, 3, until it assumes the pupa form. 

The young fall wheat attacked by these maggots, withers next spring, 
while others proceeding from the same ro:>t will remain unaffected, and 



CECIDOMYIA DESTRUCTOR. 611 

thi3 death is caused by the nutritious juice being abstracted from the 
shoot. The spring-batched maggots attach themselves to the second or 
third joint of the plant which is better able to resist their injurious 
influence. Fig. 58, a, represents a plant withering from the effect pro- 
duced by these maggots, while the stalk b, a tiller from the same root, is 
unaffected ; and hence wheat which tillers well is less liable to suffer 
extensively than varieties less disposed to this process. 

The maggots seem to live by suction alone, as they do not penetrate 
the stalk, and the injury they cause to summer wheat seems to be by 
their pressure between the leaf and inclosed stem, preventing the cir- 
culation of s ip, and the deposition of silica upon which the strength of 
the wheat straw and its ability to resist winds, etc., greatly depends. 
Sometimes a swelling or gall (Fig. 58 — 8), is produced by their presence. 
Those varieties of wheat which have a naturally strong tendency to the 
deposition of silica and the formation of a hard fliuty stalk, have been 
found to resist the attacks of the fly best, and for the reason that they 
are better able to resist breaking by the winds. Moreover, tillering 
well, which is an indication of health and vigor in the plant, may 
compensate for the injurious effects of the presence of the maggot, 
when not in overwhelming numbers, and good tillage and careful 
selection of seed will do much to prevent detrimental attacks of the 
insect. 

The fall-deposited egg hatches out a maggot which makes its way 
down the stem and is soon transformed into a dormant larva, surrounded 
by a case formed of the skin, which remains in the position marked at 
3, Fig. 58, a stem from which the leaves have been stripped, during the 
winter, without undergoing any marked change. This pupa is seen 
magnified at 5, Fig. 58. A magnified dorsal view of the active worm 
or larva is given at 4, and a lateral view of the same at 6, Fig. 58. 
When spring arrives, the dormant larva becomes transformed into a pupa, 
or chrysalide, and after remaining in this position ten or twelve days, 
the pupa-case bursts and the perfect insect emerges, about the flowering- 
time of the early spring flowers. 

The larvae of the Hessian fly have by their capacity to pass into the 
dormant-larva condition a great power to resist extremes of tempex*ature 
and atmospheric changes during the winter; how they resist, like other 
pupae, the tendency to freeze during the intense cold of our northern 
winters is a mystery ; but that they do so may be determined by examin- 
ing the partially developed pupa which will be found flexible, as in the 
case with the pupae of some other insects which have been found unfro- 
zen, although the temperature had sunk to many degrees below the 
freezing point. 



612 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

The progeny of the fall fly which have passed the winter in repose 
upon the stalks of the wheat, in the spring become developed into the 
perfect insect state, and then make a new deposit of eggs upon the same 
stalk which gave them lodgment during the wiuter, or the neighboring 
ones, but upon leaves a little higher up, as the radial leaves are now 
more or less withered. The worm hatches, makes its way to the base 
of the leaf of the first or second joint, where it does not so greatly in- 
jure the plant but that it may become weil developed ; but a slight swell- 
ing usually points out its place of rest. Commonly, however, the stalk 
bends or breaks, and gives a badly infected field an appearance as 
though a herd of cattle had run through it. The worm attains its 
growth about the first of June, becomes a pupa, and undergoes its trans- 
formation to the perfect state and emerges a complete fly during the 
last of July or first of August, to recommence its depredations upon the 
fall wheat. 

The Cecidomyia destructor is subject to the attacks of numerous para- 
sites which serve to moderate its multiplication very greatly. When 
the eggs are deposited upon the wheat leaves, they are visited by a min- 
ute four-winged insect, of the Platygaster family, elsewhere described, 
and punctured by it, and receives a deposit of from four to six eggs of 
this insect within each egg of the fly attacked, and with these within 
and feeding upon it, passes on to the dormant-larva state, when it dies, 
and these, its destroyers, at a proper season, escape from its empty shell. 
Three other minute insects attack it in the larva state, of these the most 
common is the Ceraphon destructor of Say, which, alighting upon a wheat 
stalk, instinctively sting through the stalk into the larvae in their dor- 
mant state, deposit an egg which hatches to a maggot, which lives in 
and feeds upon the worm or the fly. The attacks of these and other 
foes of the Hessian fly are so destructive that probably not more than 
one-tenth of the eggs deposited by it ever arrive at maturity. The 
second generation of the fly, that is, those hatched in the summer, are 
seemingly most subject to the attacks of these parasites. 

The means of preventing the ravages of the Hessian fly, which have been 
proposed and practiced, are very various, but none can ever be found 
probably, which will entirely destroy the insect, or wholly prevent its 
ravages, as the laws of equilibrium between vegetable and animal life, 
are such that they can not be set entirely aside, and we can only hope to 
restrain their attacks within comparatively harmless limits. 

A fertile soil, rich in all the constituent elements necessary to a heal- 
thy growth of the wheat plant, is of the first importance. This it lies 
within the power of the agriculturist to control by proper manuring, 
plowing to a proper depth, etc., and it is even supposed that the Hessian 



HOW TO PREVENT RAVAGES BY THE FLY. 613 

fly has been a benefit by compelling farmers to adopt a better mode of 
culture than was formerly in vogue in some places, and still is in many 
sections, and this improved culture has had the effect not only of lessen- 
ing the ravages of the fly, but of increasing the productiveness of the 
better cultivated lands. 

Late sowing is one of the best and easiest remedies for the fly, as it 
perishes before late sown wheat has made its appearance, and to avoid 
those accidents and diseases incident to late sown wheat proper means 
have been pointed out in the appropriate place, as draining, manuring, 
littering, etc. Grazing, rolling and mowing, have been recommended as 
good remedies, either to remove or destroy the eggs and larvae. Fly- 
proof wheats, that is, such varieties as tiller well and have a hard sili- 
cious stalk, have been recommended, and found to offer a good means 
of lessening the injurious attacks of the fly. For a description of varie- 
ties of wheat possessing these properties, see the list of the varieties 
and characteristics of the plant in the preceding pages of our article 
upon that subject. 

Soaking seed wheat has been noticed in connection with other subjects, 
and may be referred to here. Various materials have been used in so- 
lution, to hasten the germination of wheat, particularly when sown late, 
and some of the materials acting as manures give the wheat greater 
vigor and strength to resist the effects of the fly. Hot salt water (not 
hot enough to kill the germ in the grain), applied to wheat upon which 
a mixture of charcoal dust, guano, sulphate of ammonia, and other in- 
gredients was used by a Mr. Pell, of New York, with a seemingly good 
effect upon the productiveness of the crop. 

Oats as a decoy has been sown, and then, after the fly had deposited 
its eggs, the oats were plowed in, but this is equivalent only to late 
sowing. 

Decoy wheat patches have been sown in the middle of fields, and the 
flies being attracted to these, have deposited their eggs before the later 
sown portions of the field had grown up, and were then plowed under, but 
this is not a very efficient remedy in years bad on account of the great 
numbers of the flies. 

Deep covering is not good, as will be seen by referring to where this 
subject is mentioned, late shallow sowing being equal as a remedy, and 
far superior for promoting the growth of the plant. 

Procuring seed from uninfected districts is useless. Sun drying is equiv- 
alent to late sowing. Sprinkling with salt lime and other supposed reme- 
dial agents amounts to manuring only. 

Burning and plowing up the stubble are good local remedies, if per- 



614 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



formed immediately after harvest, but to be of the greatest utility 
should be practised in most, or all, of the infected district simultane- 
ously. But if a wheat stubble field be twice plowed, the second plowing 
brings up the eggs, and many of them hatch out, and the fly is not 
destroyed. 

Late sowed wheat is liable to the midge, rust, and smut, and to avoid 
all these contingencies at once, late sowed wheat should be properly 
stimulated to rapid germination and vigorous growth by proper soak- 
ing, shallow covering and good manuring, deep plowing, and a selection 
of an early ripening kind. These, with the other means pointed out, 
will in all ordinary years be sufficient to guard the wheat from the 
attacks of this one of its worst enemies. 

Why this insect and many others should be more abundant some years 
than others, it is at present impossible to determine with certainty ; but 
one thing is well established, that a constant and wide-spread culti- 
vation of its favorite food, the wheat, insures it the means of subsist- 
ence, and favors its propagation so greatly that its eradication can 
hardly be conceived to be within the bounds of possibility, and the 
unknown conditions upon which depend its extraordinary multiplication 
in particular years, may always be so far looked for as likely to occur, 
as to stimulate the farmer to a constant care both as to the manner of 
cultivating wheat and to a rational and suitable rotation of crops, to 
avoid, as far as possible, any sudden increase of this pest from affecting 
his interests seriously. And the intelligent agriculturist will seldom 
suffer serious loss if he apply his knowledge to a practical use. 

Calandra granaria [granary Weevil)} 
one of the most destructive insects which 
live among stored corn and wheat. About 
April, or as soon as the weather is warm 
enough, the beetles pair, after which the 
female burrows into the corn heaps, and 
pierces a minute hole with her beak in 
a grain, Fig. 69, 3 or 4, laying an egg 
in each, until they are all deposited, 
which often is not until the approach of 
autumn. The maggots soon hatch, and 
feed upon the flour until the husk alone 

3. Insect emerging from grain of i s left ; each grain supplying sufficient 

corn " nourishment to bring its inhabitants to 

4. Grain of wheat from which the 

maturity, when it changes to a pupa? 

Fig. 59 (1), and in about six or seven 




Fig. 59. 
Fig. 59. Calandra 
Granary weevil. 

1. Puna. 

2. Perfect insect magnified. 



insect has escaped. 
5. Natural size. 



ranana or 



CALANDRA GRANARIA. 615 

weeks from the time of pairing, the perfect weevil is hatched, and 
eats its way out of the grain. 

Unless the weevils are seen walking over the corn, it is difficult to 
detect their presence until they have been at work some time, and the 
holes of their exit become visible in the empty grains, Fig. 59 (4). On 
throwing a handful, however, upon water, their operations are mani- 
fested by the floating kernels. The grain weevils can not endure cold, 
being natives of more southern regions ; and, consequently they desert 
the grain heaps on the approach of winter to seek a warmer abode in 
the chinks of walls and crevices in beams or floors, etc., so that if the 
old stock of grain be then removed, unless the weevils be ejected or de- 
stroyed, they are ready in the spring to commence upon fresh samples of 
any sort of grain, although they give preference to barley and malt. 
Corn, however, sometimes suffers greatly from their inroads, as well as 
wheat and oats. 

Of course the eggs are extremely minute; the maggots have no feet 
are white and fat, with horny ochreous heads, armed with little jaws; 
the pupa is of a transparent white, disclosing the members of the future 
weevil through its clear skin. 

The beetle is one of the Curculionidge, and is appropriately named 
Calandra granaria. It is nearly two lines long, Fig. 59 5), magnified 
at (2) smooth, shining, a little depressed, and varies from a dark chest- 
nut to a pitchy color ; the head is furnished with two small black eyes, 
and narrowed before into a proboscis, which is shortest and thickest 
in the male; at the apex are placed the jaws and mouth, and before the 
eyes it is a little dilated, where the slender elbowed horns are attached ; 
these are nine-jointed, and terminated by a little ovate club ; the thorax 
is large and narrowed before to receive the head; it is coarsely and 
thinly sprinkled with oval pits ; the wing-cases are short and oval, 
with eighteen deep and punctured furrows down the back; it has no 
wings ; the six legs are short and stout ; the shanks are hooked at 
their extremities; the feet are bent back in repose, being four-jointed, 
the third joint heart-shaped, fourth furnished with two claws. 

G. Oryzce, the rice weevil, is another species not less destructive 
abroad, especially to the rice of the East Indies, to wheat in the southern 
States of Europe, and to the corn of Guinea. Fortunately, our climate 
is too cold for them, so that it is doubtful if they breed in Ohio, al- 
though the beetles are no uncommon inhabitants of vice, etc. Its 
transformations are similar to those of C. granaria, but the weevils are 
rather shorter and not so smooth, they vary from an ochreous or golden 
color to chestnut or pitchy, according to the age; the eyes are black; 
the thorax is rough, with strong crowded punctures, the wing-cases are 



616 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

broadest at the base, with rows of punctures down the back, forming 
ridges ; in the dark specimens, four large paler spots are very visible 
on the back, two at the base, and two toward the tail. It has a pair 
of ample wings folded beneath ; the legs vary but little from the fore- 
going species. 

Meraporus Graminicola (or an allied species of Chalcididce) is para- 
sitic on the larvae of the rice weevil, Calandra oryzcc. It is only two 
thirds of a line long, and like a minute ant, but of a glossy blue-black 
color; head hemispheric, with an eye on each side, and two shorthorns 
in front; thorax oval; abdomen elongate conic; wings none or rudi- 
mentary ; six legs, stoutish and ochreous, With brown thighs. 

No better remedy for the weevil is practicable than to omit storing 
grain in the granaries infested by them, for one or two years, until 
these insects have perished or emigrated. Perhaps fumigation with 
burning sulphur might, where practicable, be found a good remedy. 



Chlorops is a genus of insects which reduces the value of corn cropa 
to a great amount by depositing eggs in the young wheat, barley and rye. 
These eggs produce maggots, which either eat through the base of the 
central stalk, destroying the ear, or by working up the straw, Fig. 60, 
the ear is rendered more or less abortive. There are several species 
which are engaged in these operations. 

G. Lineata (the striped wheat-fly) lays its first brood of eggs in June, 
when the ears are just appearing; they are placed at the lower part of 
the ear, at the bottom of the sheath ; they hatch in about fifteen days, 
when the maggots pierce the tender straw, and make a narrow channel 
on the same, up the ear, Fig. 60 (6)-(ll)-(12), it there changes to a brown 
pupa, Fig. 60 (12), toward the middle of the furrow, and the flies hatch 
in September, laying their second batch of eggs upon the rye and other 
corn, recently sown. The fly is yellow ; horns, and a triangle on the 
crown, black; thorax with fire black stripes; abdomen with dusky 
bands, and a dot on each side at the base; apex yellow; legs yellow; 
anterior feet black, the others yellow ; with the two termiual joints black; 
length one and a half lines. 

C. Tceniopus (the ribbon-footed corn-fly), Fig. 60 (2), magnified at (3 ), 
is the species which does the greatest mischief in England, causing the 
disease in wheat and barley called the gout, from the swelling of the 
joints. The fly is pale yellow ; horns black, and a black triangle on the 
crown; thorax with three broad black stripes, and a slender black stripe 
on each side, also a black dot on the side of the breast ; abdomen pale 
greenish black, forming four black bands and two dots at the base; 



CHLOROPS. 



617 



wings transparent; poisers white; legs ochreous, basal, an,d two termi- 
nal joints of forefeet black; the others, with the two apical joints only 
black ; length one and a half line. 




Fig. 61. 
magnified, 
the stalk. 



<flHHi> 



Fig. 01. 
1. Chlorops tseniopus, or ribbon footed wheat fly. 2. natural size. 3. same 
4. larva or maggot of same. 5. pupa of same. 6. one of the pupae fixed in 
7. Ccelinus niger (natural size). 8. Ccelinus niger, magnified. 9. Ptero- 
malus micans (natural size). 10. Pteromalus micanj, magnified. 11. larva of Chlorops 
containing the larva? of Ccelinus niger. 12. point of escape of C. niger from the indu- 
rated skin of No. 6. 

These flies also deposit their eggs between the leaves in the autumn, 
and in spring, when the maggots live in the base of the stem; and, of 
course, destroy the shoot, or render the ears unproductive — the wheat 
sometimes altogether failing; in other instances, one side only of the ear, 
with the greater portion of the grain, becomes shriveled. The maggots, 
Fig. 61 (4), are whitish, shining, tapering to the head, blunt and tuber- 
cled behind; the elliptical pupae (5) are of a rusty color and fixed in the 
groove of the stalk (6) or inside of the closed leaves; from which the 
flies crawl forth with their crumpled wings in August, and are found 
in stacks through the winter. 

Asa Fitch, who has devoted much attention to the study and descrip- 
tion of noxious insects, has described, among others, the species of 
Chlorops peculiar to the country of North America, and particularly to 
the portion embraced by New York and the adjacent States, with Canada. 
52 



618 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




Fig. 02. 
Wheat Mow Fly, natural size 1-12 of an inch 
in length. 




Fig. 63. 
g. Wheat flies. 

3. Deceptive wheat fly, natural size and mag- 

nificil. 

4. Comm n wheat fly, natural size and mag- 

nified. 
6. Shank banded wheat fly, natural size and 
magnified. 



These are sufficiently like their 
relatives already described to 
render an extended notice of 
them unnecessary. They are all 
more or less destructive to the 
wheat plant, and thus force them- 
selves upon the attention of agri- 
culturists, and will ultimately 
meet with such a careful exami- 
nation by this class of citizens as 
to be far better known than they 
are at present. Figs. 62, 63, are 
magnified views of the American 
varieties of the Chlorops, and do 
not require to be more carefully 
described, as the European spe- 
cies described and figured in this 
article are so like them, that, ex- 
cept for the purposes of nice 
entomological distinction, a de- 
scription of the form and habits 
of one might serve as a basis of 
acquaintance with the other. 

There is a parasite named 
Ccelinus niger, Fig. 61 (7), mag- 
nified at (8), which punctures 
the maggots; and these again 
fall victims to the beautiful little 
Pteromalus micans (9), magni- 
fied at (10). 

Ccelinus niger is a small ichneu- 
mon fly, parasitic upon Chlorops 
(Fig. 61). The eggs are supposed 
to be laid in the maggots, in the 
stem and spathes of the green 
wheat, feeding upon the former 
as soon as they hatch, and under- 
going their transformation in 
the indurated skin of the Chlo- 
rops maggot (11). The Ccelinus 
hatches several days before the 
Chlorops, and eats a hole through 



CUCUJUS FESTACEUS. 



619 




Fig. 64. 



the leaves to escape (12). There are twelve British species, which are 
abundant from Midsummer to Michaelmas, in meadows; the one bred 
from the wheat Cblorops is named Ccelinus niger (7), magnified at (8), 
being of a pitchy color; the two long-jointed horus, head, and trunk, are 
glossy black; the abdomen is narrowed at the base; the ovipositor of the 
female is scarcely visible ; the four wings are transparent ; stigma brown • 
legs slender ; four pair ochreous, with dusky feet. 

Cucujus Festaceus. — 
This minute corn bee- 
tle inhabits granaries 
and mills, eating into 
the wheat, and depos- 
iting its eggs, which 
produce little ochre- 
ous larvae, with fork- 
ed tails, Fig. 64 (1), 
magnified at (2), that, 
feed upon the farina, 
and, with the weevils, 
do great mischief. In 
all probability they undergo their transformation in the grain. 

The beetle (4), magnified at (3), is depressed, and bright fulvous, 
finely punctured, and clothed with short ochreous down ; the head is 
large, with two little black eyes, and two straight eleven-jointed horns ; 
the thorax is squarish, the wing-cases of six indistinct ridges, and con- 
ceal a pair of ample wings; it has six small legs. Fig. 64 (5) and (7) 
are Trugosita mauritanica (see p. 628), and its larvae, which also injure 
grain. 

Micropus Leucopterus (Say), the chinch bug (Fig. 65 natural size 
and greatly magnified ), is undoubtedly one of the most pernicious 
insects, according to the writings of Asa Fitch, which we have in the 
United States. Although not confined to the southern portion of this 
country, its destructive habits have been most severely felt in that sec- 
tion. It is a small insect, of coal-black color, with snow-white wing- 
covers, which are laid flat upon its back. 

They made their appearance in North Carolina in 1783, and by 1785 
hud become so numerous and destructive as to cause the culture of wheat 
to be abandoned in some districts for four or five years, and again became 
destructive in the same State in 1809, and probably at other times. In 
the Cultivator, Vol. VI., p. 103, A. D., 1839, W\ S Gibbes, of Chester, S. 
C, describes their ravages in the wheat, oats and cornfields, as exceed- 
ingly destructive, and was compelled to burn them, corn and all, to save 



620 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




the parts of fields which had not yet been attacked. The season he 
describes as hot and dry. 

J. W. Jeffries, of North Carolina, 
describes their attacks upon the wheat 
fields as beginning late in May and 
early in June, and as the wheat ripens 
or is destroyed by them, they migrate 
to other fields, oats, corn, etc., and then 
to the woods, in incalculable numbers. 
The' rapidity of their multiplication is 
great beyond estimation. 

In 1840, the total destruction of the 
wheat crop was threatened, but the 
season became wet, and the insects were 
destroyed, and their ravages were ar- 
rested. About this time (1840-4), they 
became known on the upper Missis- 
sippi by the name of " Mormon lice," 
as the Illinois people supposed that the 
Mormons were the causers of this pest, 
as our ancestors supposed that the Hes- 
sian fly was bred by the German allies 
of the British troops. It was described by Dr. Le Baron, as a most formid- 
able scourge, devastating the fields of wheat and other crops, and emit- 
ing a smell living or dead, which is most disgusting. In this section of 
country many fields were burnt over to prevent spreading and to avoid 
their return another year. It was noticed to be most abundant in the 
south and east parts of fields, but in swampy places, the wheat or other 
grain was untouched. It was but little noticed in wet seasons, but three 
consecutive dry. summers (1855), served to multiply it prodigiously. 
Early wheat escaped its ravages, as did the first crop upon newly broken- 
up prairies. The grain from injured fields is light and shriveled, when 
compared with other samples. 

Various writers of the West, mention or describe this insect from 1850 
to 1856, and all concur that, when numerous, it is very destructive, that 
it first attacks the wheat fields, marching forward in the work of 
destruction, with pretty well defined lines likp an army, once in a while 
sending out a small foraging party to destroy a small patch of wheat 
or other grain, beside the main line of devastation. When the wheat 
has been killed or cut, when it has become sapless, they march to other 
fields, oats and corn, which latter they are said to cover so closely some- 



Fig. Ga. 
Upper fig. natural size. 
Lower fig. magnified. 



CHINCH BUG JURIS. 



621 



times, as to make the stalks look as though painted black. Wherever 
they go in numbers the grain dies. 

These insects belong to the Hemipterous genus Rhjparochromus, fam- 
ily hygreidae. Length If lines, or 3-20 of an inch. Body black, covered 
by a fine gray down, not visible to the naked eye ; basal joint of the 
antenna? honey-yellow, second joint the same, tipt with black, third and 
fourth joints black, head brown; wings and wing-cases white; the lat- 
ter black at their insertion, and have near the middle two short irregu- 
lar black lines, and a conspicuous black marginal spot ; legs dark honey- 
yeliow, terminal joint of the feet and the claws black. The young 
individuals are vermilion red, thorax brown, with a white band across 
the middle of the body, comprising the two basal segments of the abdo- 
men. As they increase in size they become darker, changing first to 
brown, and then to a dull black, the white band still remaining. The 
antenna? and legs are varied with reddish, and gradually change until 
they assume the characters of the perfect insect. 

They are propagated by means of eggs, deposited in the ground, and 
are hatched out in the spring. They never appear, like insects of other 
orders, as maggots ; yet in the larvae, or developing state, they diifer 
much from the perfect insect. 

Dry seasons favor their production — wet kills them, hence the practical 
deduction that drenching fields infested by them, copiously, by means of 
a garden, or other watering engine, would afford a means of arresting 
their ravages; and this might be done in many situations, with so little 
labor and expense, that the grain saved from their rapacity would amply 
repay for the outlay of means. There is no other feasible means of destroy- 
ing them known at present, but, doubtless, Providence has placed within 
the reach of human ingenuity, all the means needed for the preservation 
of man, and the works of his hands, and necessity will prompt their dis- 
covery sooner or later. 
Miris erraticus, Linn., 
is abundant in wheat 
fields from the begin- 
ning of July till late 
in autumn; it is nar- 
row, and three and a 
half lines long, of a /* | 
3traw color; the horns 
and legs more ochre- 
ous, long, and slender; 
the former black at 
the base and apex ; 




Fig. 06. 



622 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 



the thighs spotted with black, and there is a broad slate-colored stripe 
from the nose to the extremity of the wings when they are closed. 

M. tritici, Kirby, is apparently only a pale variety of the foregoing. 
It is very common in wheat fields, from earing to harveSt-time. 
Fig. 66 (5), shows the natural size at rest; (6) the insect flying. 

Lepidotus, or Elaier Holosericens (the Satincoated Click-beetle). — Noth- 
ing is known of the wire-worm which produces this elater* it is deep 
brown, variegated with shining ochreous rings and spots; the legs are 
rusty, and the wings ample. It is abundant in wheat fields, under 
stones, etc., from April to August. All the elaters have the power to 
leap up when laid on their backs, by employing in a special manner 
the head, the trunk, the base of the body or post-pectus, with four 
cavities in which the legs were inserted; the lobe being pressed into the 
cavity in the chest and under the edge, the head and trunk are thrown 
back, the lobe is suddenly liberated, and the animal is jerked up to 
regain its feet. 

Noclua (Agroiis) Tritici, Linn, (the wheat full-body moth), expands 
from one and a quarter to one and a half inches ; is ashy brown ; supe- 
rior wings, with an oval and ear-shaped pale spot on the disk, and a 
dark, elliptical one below; also two wavy lines beyond, and between 
them is a row of pointed black streaks; the pinion edge is spotted; 
inferior wings dusky, white at the base in the male; legs annulated 
with white. The caterpillar is naked and yellow, with three white lines, 
and feeds on the ears of wheat. 

N. Agroiis Lineolati, Har., is probably a variety of N. tritici, which, 
from the myriads of moths that have occurred in Kent, just befor har- 
vest, must greatly 
3. diminish the wheat 

crops in some sea- 
sons. 

Oscinis is a genus 
of flies closely allied 
to chlorops, and sim- 
ilar in its economy 
e — the larvaa being 
a very destructive to 
b wheat before it ears.. 
0. Granarius (Curt.) 
seems to differ from 
the other species, as, 
from the little that 
is known of it, the 




Ftg. 67. 



oscinis. 623 

larvse are presumed to live in the ears of wheat, as musca or chlorops 
first does in those of the barley. Fig. 67 (1) represents a grain of 
wheat, with the shining ochreous pupa attached (2); the fly hatched 
from it expands only two lines; it is shining black, with a greenish 
cast; the horns are small; the head is rather large with two lateral 
eyes ; the thorax is globose-quadrate ; body conical ; wings transparent, 
ample, similar to those of chlorops, but the dark, cortal nervure extends 
to the second apical one ; club of balancers ochreous ; four posterior legs 
black, basal joint of feet dull ochreous (3, 4, magnified). 

0. Pumilionis (Bierk), the Rye-worm fly, is very destructive to that 
valuable crop in Sweden, stunting its growth, and causing the stems to 
die; the little white maggots inhabit the base of the stem, changing to 
yellow pupae the end of May, and the flies hatch the middle of June. 
They are one line long, and yellow; eyes, horns, and a triangle on the 
nape black ; thorax and body black above ; the former with two yellow 
lines down the back; the poisers are white ; legs grayish, black at the 
extremities ; the fore legs bear two black spots. 

0. Vastator ( Curt). — The larvse of this fly injure wheat crops to a 
great extent; they are found in the spring near to the base of the stem 
(b), and by eating through the plume (a) it can be drawn out; it there- 
fore soon withers, and the future ear is destroyed; they are yellowish, tap- 
ering to the head, blunt at the tail ; the mouth is furnished with two 
black, horny points (d, g, the natural length). About midsummer they 
change to elliptical rusty pupae within the folds of the leaves (c, f, the 
same magnified; e, the natural length). The flies hatch early in July, 
and are very similar to 0. granarius in size and color, being shining 
greenish black; the wing? lie flat on the back in repose, and extend con- 
siderably beyond the body; all the nervures are pitchy; club of poisers 
ochreous; base and tips of four anterior shanks rusty, as well as the 
base of all the feet (3, natural size walking; 4, flying and magnified). 
As the plants sometimes tiller after being visited by these pests, pulling 
up and burning the plants is not always advisable. The best remedy is 
the alternation of green crops, which do not attract the oscinis, and on 
which their larvae can not subsist: for probably nothing tends more to 
infect land with insect plagues, than successive cropping and slovenly 
farming. But one of the best and most efficient friends the farmer has, 
is the female of a little black fly (5), which, with its long ovipositor, 
pierces the infested stems and lays its eggs in those of the oscinis; the 
maggots of both hatch, one feeding inside of the other, without hinder- 
ing its growth, until they are full fed and change to pupae, still one 
within the other; but instead of the fly of the oscinis, that of the para- 
site comes forth to fulfill its mission — checking the multiplication of 



624 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

the baneful oscinis. The parasite is named by Nees von Esenbeck, Sig- 
alphus candatus; it is entirely black, excepting the transparent wings, 
with pitchy stigma and nervines; the fore legs are tawny, excepting 
the base of the thighs; base of the other shanks tawny; expanse of 
wings, If to 2£ lines (5 )-((>) magnified. 

Pachymerus Calcitrator (Grav.). is a parasitic ichneumon, which keeps 
in check Cephus pygmaeus, whose larvae feed in the stems of rye, wheat, 
and barley. This fly punctures the larvae when they are concealed in 
the stem, and as soon as the eggs hatch, the parasitic maggots feed upon 
the others, change to pupae in the straw, and the ichneumon is bred from 
them in June. P. calistrator expands half an inch ; is shining black ; 
head large ; horns like two longish brown threads, yellow beneath ; 
abdomen compressed, slender at the base; third and fourth joints red- 
dish, remainder brown, edged with white; four wings ample; hinder 
legs long and brown ; four anterior ochreous on the inside, hinder 
thighs thick, the shanks sometimes tawny. Female antennae shorter; 
abdomen spindle-shaped, four first segments reddish ; oviduct projecting. 

Polydcsmus Complanatus, Linn., (the 
^&®& flattened Milliped), is often the most 
destructive of all the species in the 
FlG - G8 - field and garden, eating in the spring 

the roots of grain and vegetables, especially wheat, carrots, beans, and 
onions; it varies from a quarter to a half an inch in length; is of a 
pale lilac color, linear, and flattened ; it has no eyes ; the two horns are 
short and clubbed ; the body is composed of nearly twenty granulated 
segments, with the hinder angles acute, and the tail mucronate. It has 
between sixty and seventy legs, tapering, jointed, and of an ochreous 
tint, Fig. 1 and 2 magnified. 

Proctotrupes Viator (Hal.), is a parasitic fly, which lays its eggs in 
wire-worms and other subterranean larvae, thus being of great service 
to the agriculturist. It is black and shining, the horns and legs red- 
dish, dusky at their tips, the former are slender and thirteen-jointed; the 
body is ovate conic, attached by a slender neck to the elongated thorax, 
and the tapering apex is furnished with a stout curved ovipositor; the 
four wings are transparent, almost nerveless, with a triangular brown 
spot on the costa of the superior : they expand about one quarter of an 
inch. 



PLATYUASTER-PTEROMALUS. 



625 




Fig. 69. 
nified. 



Fig. 69. 
1, natural fiize, 2, mag- 



PLATYGASTER TIPUL.E. 

This minute insect belongs to Proctotru- 
pidce, and to it we are indebted for the 
destruction of myriads of the wheat midge. 
The female is of a shining black color ; 
wings transparent; without nervures ; an- 
tennae ten jointed ; bright ochreous ; thighs 
and shanks clubbed ; feet long, slender, 
and five-jointed. The tip of the abdomen 
is armed with a long curved ovipositor, 
with which it pierces the larvae of the 
wheat-fly and deposits an egg, which 
speedily hatching becomes a small grub, 
that living upon the fatty matter of the midge larvae, ends by destroy- 
ing it. 

Curtis, one of the best European entomologists, says of this insect: 
"This insect, of all others known, is the greatest enemy of the fly. It 
does not like strong sunlight, but takes shelter within the husk of the 
grain, and among the leaves. When about to deposit its eggs, it 
travels over the w T hole head with great rapidity, and bending its body, 
inserts the ovipositor, with a vibratory motion, into the larvae of the 
fly. In a short time the deposited egg hatches, and the grub begins 
to feed upon its victim. By this means the immense increase of the 
fly is reduced, as the stung larvae never become flies. - ' 

Pteromalus micans (Oliv.) is a brilliant parasitic fly, which hatches 
from the stems of wheat infested by the Cklorops, Fig. 61. These 
little creatures have the power of discovering the hidden larvae and 
pupae, in which the female, Fig. 61 (9, 10 magnified), lays her eggs, 
to live upon the fat and muscles of the Chlorops. 

The sexes of P. micans are very dissimilar ; the male is of a lovely 
green, with a blue or yellow tinge ; the flail-shaped horns are brown 
and thirteen-jointed; the body is strap-shaped, black, smooth and shin- 
ing; the wings are transparent, with a short curved nervure on the 
costa, legs bright ochre, thighs pitchy, feet tipped with black. The 
female is dull green; base of horns ochreous ; the body is lune-shaped, 
violet above, metallic green at %e base; expanse three lines. 

P. Puparum (Linn.) is bred in multitudes from the pupae of Pontia 
Brassicce, and other white-cabbage butterfles. The sexes vary, and 
resemble P. micans. The male is brilliant green ; horns, slender, 



.>:, 



626 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

tawny; body very glossy and golden green; wings limpid; legs bright 
ochreous ; tips of feet pitchy. Female greenish-black ; horns black, 
ochreous at the base ; body shining black, often violet above ; base 
metallic green ; legs bright ochre ; thighs pitchy, excepting the base 
and tips; four hinder shanks brown in the middle; tips of feet black ; 
expanse three lines. 

Staphylinus is a genus of Rove-beetles, and a small larva, which is 
presumed to be the offspring of some one of the species (possibly a 
Tachyporus) has been detected injuring the wheat-crop, and destroying 
one-fifth of the plants. 

This larva is scarcely one-fourth of an inch long ; the head is fur- 
nished with strong jaws, feelers, and two little horns ; it has six jointed 
legs, terminating in claws ; down the back and sides of the body are 
four rows of spines, being four on each segment; the tail has a fleshy 
foot, and two feelers, composed of four joints, which are useful in bur- 
rowing. In October, these larvae attack the green wheat, causing the 
death of the plants by cutting round the stem with their strong jaws, 
about an inch under ground ; the object being to get at the white shoot, 
which they eat. At this early stage of the crop, the empty husks of 
the grain remain attached to the roots, and into these the larvae retreat 
when disturbed, making them their habitations, and possibly cells also, 
to undergo their transformation in. 

Staphylinus, or Ocypus olens (Fab.), the Fetic, Rove-beetle, is one of 
the largest and commonest species, and, from its ferocious appearance 
when irritated, it is usually known as the devil's coach-horse. It is how- 
ever a most useful insect to the cultivator, for, in its larvae state, it lives 
underground, feeding entirely upon animal substances during the win- 
ter ; in the spring it is full fed, and forms a cell beneath a stone or clod 
to become a pupa. In September and October these beetles are abundant 
every where, and occasionally a few are around in the spring; but it is 
in the autumn they are most serviceable in destroying the ear-wigs 
upon which they live. S. olens is of a dead black, thickly punctured, 
and covered with short hairs ; the head is large, with two powerful 
jaws; the horns are short; the wing-cases are small, quadrate, and 
cover two tawny wings, which are too short for flight; the body is long, 
and it has six strong legs (the figure was given to the engraver, 
but was not finished in time). See Fig. 859, Morton's Encyclopedia 
of Agriculture. * 

Tenebrio Moliter (Linn.) , (the meal-worm beetle), generates in flour, 
bran, and meal bins, and is consequently found in granaries, mills, and 
farm-houses. The beetles appear in April, May, and June. They are 



TENEBRIO — TINEA. 



627 




Fig. 70. 



smooth, slightly depressed 
and of a pitchy, or chest- 
nut color, especially the 
under side and legs; mi- 
nutely and closely punc- 
tured; head somewhat 
orbicular, with two small 
eyes, and short, slender, 
even jointed horns; tho- 
rax sub-quadrate ; hinder 
legs acute ; elytra ellip- 
tical, with sixteen shallow 
furrows, and beneath them 
ample wings, which are smoky on the costa ; legs stout ; feet five-jointed, 
hinder pair with only four joints (Fig. 70 (1); flying and magnified at 
2). The meal-worm is cylindric, smooth, ochreous, with bright, rusty 
bands, and a few scattered hairs ; two small horns, six pectoral legs, 
and two minute spines at the tail (3). The pupa (4), is pale ochreous, 
with the members visible, and two spines at the tail. 

T. Obsctirus (Fab.), is similar in form to the foregoing, but the beetle 
is dull black; the under side, horns, feelers, and feet chestnut color, and 
the thorax is longer. The larvce is shining, pale brown, and prefers dry 
and sound flour, while the other meal-worm prefers damp and damaged 
flour. T. molilor is an old inhabitant of England, but T. obscurus has 
been introduced with American flour, and is sometimes abundant in Lon- 
don and the provinces. Cleanliness is the best guard against these 
insects, and the meal-worm is a favorite food of nightingales. 

Tinea Granella (Linn.), is a satiny and cream white; the head tufted 
with little, dark eyes; the horns are long and slender, and in front are 
two spreading feelers, between which is a short, spiral proboscis. The 
body is blunt in the male, pointed in the female, with a retractile ovi- 
positor; when at rest, the wings slope like the roof of a house, and 
the fringe is turned up like a tail ; the superior wings are long and nar- 
row, freckled with brown, and mottled with blackish spots, two being 
on the same disk, three on the pinion edge, and toward the apex are 
three smaller ones; the fringe is long and brown, with two or three pale 
stripes ; the inferior wings are smaller, lance-shaped, and of a pale 
mouse color, with a fine, long fringe. It has six legs ; the hinder shanks 
long, hairy outside, with spurs at the apex, and a pair near the base ; 
the feet are long and slender. The larvoe of this moth will also destroy 
books, boxes, and woolen materials, as well as timber and grain. To 
expel these troublesome and expensive visitors, in the winter the floors 



628 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

should be well scrubbed with hot water and soap, whenever the grana- 
ries, etc., are empty, and the walls, ceiling, and beams, must be washed 
with lime and water as hot as possible. The floors may also be sprinkled 
with salt dissolved in vinegar; and salt, mixed with the grain, will kill 
the caterpillars without injuring it. When the larvae are feeding in 
the spring and summer, kiln-drying at about 78° of Fahrenheit will 
kill them; and currents of cold air, by means of ventilators are a safe 
and certain remedy, as they become torpid and die if a low temperature 
be sustained. The moths are best destroyed as soon as they hatch in 
April and May, by burning gas or some such powerful light, which 
attracts them, and they are at once burnt or rendered incapable of gen- 
erating the species. Frequently turning over the heaps will also 
destroy the eggs and young larvae. 

Trogosita Mauritanica (the Cadelle). — This imported insect is some- 
times found in granaries and malt-houses in England, but it requires a 
more southern climate to render it abundant. The larvae are called 
Cadelle, in France, where they commit extensive ravages among the 
stored corn. They will also feed on bread, almonds, rotten floors, and 
dead trees. They live in this state a year and a half, and when full 
grown are sometimes nearly three-quarters of an inch long; and by nib- 
bling the outside of the grain they do much mischief. They are flat- 
tened, fleshy, rough, with scattered hairs and whitish, tapering toward 
the head, formed of twelve distinct segments besides the head, which is 
horny and black, with two sharp, curved jaws ; the first segment has 
two semi-oval brown spots, and the two following, two round ones on 
each ; the tail is horny, with two hooks; and they have six pectoral legs. 
When they are ready to transform to pupae, they bury themselves in the 
earth, or among any refuse at hand ; and the beetle which hatches from 
them is the T. mauritanicus of Linnaeus, and the T. caraboides of Fabri- 
cus. — It is depressed, shining, and of a pitchy, or deep chestnut color, 
and regularly punctured ; the head is large, with strong jaws, two 
small eyes, and before them two short clubbed horns ; the trunk is 
broader, somewhat orbicular, but narrowed behind, and broadest 
before; with the sides margined, and pointed in front; elytra large, 
elliptical, with eighteen delicately punctured lines; two wings beneath: 
six short legs, and four jointed feet. The beetles are long-lived, and said 
to be carnivorous, destroying grain-moths, etc. See Fig. 04 (5)-(7). 

Thrips cerealium (Hal.) is an active little insect, which resides in the 
spathes and husks of wheat and rye in June, causing the grain to shrivel, 
and at an earlier period effecting the abortion of the ear, by puncturing 
the stems above the joints, being the most injurious to late sown wheat. 
In the larval state they are deep yellow, with part of the head and two 



WIRE-WORMS. 



629 




spots on the pro-thorax dusky ; the horns and legs are marked with 

dusky rings; the pupa is active and pale yellow, with the horns, legs, 

and wing-cases whitish, the eyes reddish. The perfect insect is larger, 

flat, smooth, shining, and pitch-color. The male is apterous, the head is 

semi-oval, with a short stout proboscis beneath, a granulated eye on 

each side, three simple ones on the crown, and two short nine-jointed 

horns in front; thorax somewhat quadrate, narrowed before, body very 

long, and acuminated in the female, which sex has four long narrow 

wings, lying parallel 

on the back in repose, 

Fig. 70 (1), (natural 

size 2), fringed with 

very long hairs and 

adapted for flight (3), 

(magnified at 4) ; they 

have six short stout 

legs, the fii'st pair of 

shanks straw color, 

feet very short, and 

terminated by a little 

gland. They are not y I6i 70. 

free from parasites, and a little white mite feeds upon them. 

T. minutissima (Linn.) lives beneath potato leaves in the summer, and 
subsists upon the sap. The larvae are ochreous and sole-shaped, eyes 
black, horns four jointed (5), (magnified at 6). The pupfe are similar 
and ochreous. The perfect thrips is of a pale dirty ochre color, with two 
six-jointed horns; the lateral eyes are deep black; the trunk is elon- 
gated, the collar sub-quadrate, hinder portions broader, and to this are 
attached four narrow dirty-white wings, which are fringed with long 
hairs, and folded parallel on the back in repose; the six legs are short, 
stout, and simple; the body is pitchy, elliptical, nine-jointed; the tail 
pointed and bristly (7), (magnified at 8) . 

Wire-worms. — Complaints are occa- 
sionally made of the wire-worm and 
cut-worm, but a careful cultivation and 
a proper rotation of crops has lessened 
the evil produced by these insects. 

A figure of the wire-worm (Fig. 71) 
is given, the better to communicate a 
knowledge of its true character. The 
parent insects (2, 3, Fig. 71) are familiarly known as the snapping bug, 
from the sound it produces when thrown upon its back in making the 




Fig. 



630 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

peculiar spriug by "which it regains its position. There are several 
varieties of the snapping bug, but the one most injurious is a brown 
smooth bug, which is about an inch long, and is well known to 
every farmer. The larvae or worm, which is the incompletely devel- 
oped offspring of the bug, is about one iuch long, having six feet ; it is 
tough, smooth and slender, and is said to continue five years before 
being transformed into the perfect insect, during which time it feeds 
upon the roots of wheat, barley, oats, corn, and grass. Its ravages are 
sometimes extensive and desolating. Newly cultivated grounds or mead- 
ows, which have not been cultivated for a long time, are most infested 
by them, but they can be destroyed by cultivation, and if ground be 
fallowed and exposed to freezing during the winter, this insect, as well 
as the cut-worm, which has often needlessly been mistaken for it, may 
be effectually destroyed. Fig. 71 (1) is the worm or larvae wire-worm. 
2 the perfect male insect ; 3 the perfect female insect — all of nearly nat- 
ural size and general appearance. There are larger species which are 
not nearly so numerous, and hence not so destructive as the one here 
described. 

The true we-worms are the offspring of the elaters or click-beetles, 
which lay tbeir eggs in the field, where they hatch, become larvae or 
wire-worms, are transferred into pupae, and from these the perfect click- 
beetles emerge. It is believed that the female elater, of those species 
so injurious to field-crops, after pairing with, the male, lays her eggs upon 
or beneath the surface of the earth ; they are small, round or oval, and 
yellowish white. The almost invisible worms which hatch from these, 
immediately attack the crops, whether of corn, turnips, mangold-wurzel, 
potatoes, cabbages, or grass ; and during the five years they are arriving 
at maturity, they no doubt moult their horny skins several times. 
When full fed they form, generally in July or August, an oval cell deep 
in the earth, and casting off the last coat, they are transformed to deli- 
cate white pupae, and in about a fortnight they become perfect beetles. 
Wire-worms are not much unlike meal-worms, but they are more active, 
burrowing into the soil #ith great facility when laid upon the surface. 
The different kinds resemble each other considerably, the greatest dis- 
similarity existing in the form of the tail. Sometimes the common 
wire-worm will ascend into the stem of a plant to feed, and even come 
forth at night, or in a dull day, to revel upon the leaves ; but they prefer 
keeping beneath the soil, as they can not endure the sun or dryness; 
and as they dislike cold, in severe winters they. retire too deep into the 
earth to do any mischief at that season. Crows, starlings, sea-gulls, lap- 
wings, pheasants, partridges, wag-tails, robbins, blackbirds, thrushes, 
fowls and especially moles, keep down the wire-worms. There are even 



ZABRUS GIBBUS. 631 

insects which destroy them — one a ground-beetle, named Steropus madi- 
dus, and probably many more of the Carabidse ; also a small kind of 
ichneumon fly ( Proctotrupes viator), which is very abundant, and exam- 
ines every chink in the earth to find a wire-worm, to pierce it with its 
short ovipositor, laying twenty or thirty eggs in its victim, which pro- 
duce maggots that feed on the wire-worm and destroy it. 

The remedies to be employed are numerous, and can only be alluded 
to here. It seems that turning in sheep and cattle to feed off lays, by tread- 
ing down the soil and saturating it with ammonia, prevents the beetles 
from emerging from their cells, and kills the worms. Heavy rolling is also 
beneficial in the spring. Top-dressings of soot, lime, gas-lime, salt, and 
nitrate of soda, are more or less preventatives. Hand-picking is a cer- 
tain remedy ; and 12,000 wire-worms have been thus collected from one 
acre of turnips. Slices of potatoes, turnips, carrots, etc., kept moist 
under the surface will decoy them. A crop of woad or white mustard 
will starve and banish the wire-worms. 

Zabrus Gibbus (Fab.), (Corn Ground Beetle). — This is one of the 
Caribictee, a carnivorous family, which, in its larva and perfect states, is 
very serviceable in destroying the caterpillars and maggots which infest 
fields and gardens. Z. gibbus is, however, an exception, for both the 
larva and beetle feed upon the crops. The beetles run about our grain- 
fields in July ; they are six lines long, very convex and broad, of a pitch 
color, smooth and shining; the mouth and legs are bright rusty; the 
jaws are strong; the horns short, slender, and eleven-jointed; the 
trunk is delicately striated across, with a faint line down the back; 
there are sixteen finely-punctured furrows on the elytra, with ample 
wings beneath; the legs are stout, shanks spiny, and formed for bur- 
rowing ; the fore-feet broadest in the males. Clusters of eggs are 
deposited by the female in the earth; the larvae from which are whitish, 
and slightly hairy; head, thorax, and a stripe down the body brown; 
the head is large, with short horns, powerful jaws and feelers; and it 
has six pectoral legs. Daring the three years they are in this state, 
they excttvate perpendicular and curved burrows in the earth, from a 
few inches to two feet in depth ; and about the beginning of June 
form oval cells, in which they change to whitish pupas, with dark 
eyes. 

In Saxony, the larvae have destroyed two sowings of wheat, and then 
attacked the rye and barley. They come out at night, and eat into the 
stems of grain close to the surface, to feed on the pith. 

The beetles afterward make their appearance in enormous quantities, 
concealing themselves under clods by day, and at night ascending the 
stems to feed upon the soft grain. 



632 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

Anguillula Tritici. — Among the enemies of the wheat plant, the An- 
guillula tritici, which has been described by British and Continental 
European writers, but which has not, so far as we know, been noticed by 
any American authority, deserves a passing notice in the present work. 
This it does because, although it has not been observed, as yet, to have 
produced sufficient injury to the wheat crops in North America to have 
forced itself into notice; yet, from its peculiar nature and characteris- 
tics, it may soon become, unless agriculturists are fortified against its 
attacks by a knowledge of these, a dangerous and destructive enemy. 

This worm belongs to the family of Helminthes nematoides, nearly all 
the members of which are parasites, either of plants or animals, and is 
the cause of the diseased condition of wheat, known in England as 
mildew, and in France as niel, and possesses the very singular property 
of suffering no detriment to its vitality by complete desiccation, of any 
length of duration, and of being likewise unaffected by any of the nar- 
cotics, or other vegetable poisons, of the alkaloid group, acting upon the 
nervous system, suffering immersion in those of very considerable extent 
of concentration of solution, without injury to its vitality. 

It is found, in the wheat affected, to have replaced the flour, and pro- 
duces a shriveled, wrinkled grain, which, upon being broken is found 
to contain a white powder, which being moistened and examined 
by means of a microscope, is found to consist of numerous filiform parti- 
cles, which are a?iguillulce, or wheat eel-worms. These worms in the 
mature wheat, examined at any time, are always found without sexual 
organs, and are therefore to be looked upon as in a transitional state. 

When wheat containing them is sown, they are dry, shriveled, and 
seemingly dead; but, absorbing moisture in the earth, they burst the 
covering of the grain, and, emerging, find lodgment between the leaves 
of the growing plant, near the center, where these are yet folded together 

in the form of an envelop for the form- 
ing stalk and head. Fig. 72 is a 
transverse, segmental section of a 
young stalk of wheat, magjuified 100 
times, showing three of the interior 
leaves, with two anguillulae between 
these, as they are rolled or involuted 
upon each other, and by creeping 
among these leaves, the worms find 
their way to the head of wheat, while 
undergoing that process of develop- 
ment which occurs previous to its 
" heading out." In Fig. 74, magnified 




ANGUILLUL^S TRITICI. 



633 




Fig. 74. 



100 times, is seen a section of young wheat stalk, upon which two 
anguilluhe (still in the larva state) are 
seen, but into the tissues of which they do 
not find entrance. 

During the early stages of the develop- 
ment of the wheat-head, while the future 
chaff, the stamens, ovary, and pistil are yet 
rudimentary and composed of scales, as it 
were, of soft cellular matter, the anguil- 
lulse find entrance into the forming grain ; 
but, if they do not reach the head until 
these parts become distinct, and more con- 
sistent, they are then unable to effect their 
entrance at all. 

Until these worms penetrate the form- 
ing grain, they undergo no change after 
being resuscitated by the moisture in the 
earth, which was supplied to them when 
the grain was sown ; but so soon as they 
reach the grain, their change from the larva or rudimentary to the adult 
state takes place, and they then exhibit the sexual organs, — the female is 
impregnated by copulation, and deposits a vast number of eggs, and, ac- 
cording to the law of insect existence, procreation being completed, the 
parents perish, while the ova are developed to the larva state in what 
would have been a wheat grain, and becomes desiccated when this dries 
at maturity, and there wait a resuscitation when the wheat is sown again 
in the fall. These larvse may be desiccated and resuscitated a vast num- 
ber of times without destroying their vitality ; neither are they destroyed 
by heat which is not sufficiently great to destroy the germinating capacity 
of grain; nor does freezing kill them unless they are entirely surrounded 
by water, and they are therefore difficult to destroy, in a remarkable degree. 

The injury they effect is seen in the leaves of the wheat, occasionally, 
which are shriveled and twisted and badly formed, as in Fig. 75, or they 
present the shriveled, worm-eaten appearance represented by Fig. 76, 
which is a magnified section of a leaf of mildewed wheat. But the prin- 
cipal or only real damage effected by them is in the grains attacked, 
which generally give lodgment to eight or ten larva?, afterward trans- 
formed into the perfect insect, and these deposit so many ova that the 
grain never contains any flour, its development being entirely metamor- 
phosed, and its place supplied by an envelop consisting of the bran, con- 
taining the white flour mentioned, and which, at the maturity of the 
wheat, is completely desiccated. 



634 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




Fig. 75. 



Fig. 76. 



The appearance of a wheat head attacked by the anguillulse is very- 
irregular, no one head ever having all its grains attacked; the healthy 
grains, with their husks or chaff, reach their ordinary development, while 
the diseased grains present a shriveled diminutive form, and the glumes 
are contorted and smaller in size than natural, as indicated in the wheat- 
head in Fig. 75. 

These parasites are peculiar to wheat alone, and their propagation may 
be prevented by choosing clean seed, proper screening, separating the 
shriveled grains, which should be destroyed by burning, or by being 
heated in an oven at so high a temperature as to destroy the vitality of 
the desiccated larvae, or by soaking the seed wheat for twenty-four hours 
in a mixture of sulphuric acid one part and water one hundred and fifty 



GORTYNA ZOjE. 635 

parts, which destroys the worm without affecting the germinating capacity 
of the wheat. Rotation of crops also prevents their multiplication. 
Care should be taken not to cast the refuse grains upon the manure piles, 
as the worms, by this means, find their way back to the fields again. 

Experiments instituted in France, for the purpose of determining the 
matter, go to prove that the mildewed wheat, or the wheat damaged by 
the anguillulce, is entirely innoxious when used as food by men or ani- 
mals, but greatly lacking in its proper nutritive qualities. 

Wheat may be attacked in the same head, even, by other diseases and 
parasites, at the same time as by the anguillulce ; some of which may be 
prevented by like means as recommended to obviate the attacks of this 
enemy. 

Gortyna Zoce, (Fig. 77). — At the reaping and 
mowing trial held by the Board at Hamilton, But- 
ler county, July 1, 1857, I found an insect affect- 
ing the Barley. In July, 1858, I found the same 

insect affecting the wheat in the vicinity of Columbus. In appearance, 
it resembles the common spindle worm Gortyna Zoos (and for that reason 
I have given it the above name, trusting that some competent entomolo- 
gist will furnish the proper name) ; but if fully grown, is considerably 
smaller. The cut is a correct representation of the living insect and of 
the normal size. It has sixteen legs, the first pair of pro-legs being 
rather smaller than the others. The color is a brownish black, the head 
and first segment yellowish white, with a blackish lateral stripe. The 
third segment has five white stripes ; the lower part of the abdomen 
being of the same color. The antennae are very short and haix'-like — 
the jaws brown — the pectoral legs are black, and the pro-legs white. 
In mode of progression this caterpillar resembles the Geometrae, bending 
itself in the form of an arch ; but the presence of ten pro-legs separates 
it from that family. It is no doubt closely allied to the spindle worm, 
and may belong to the same genus. Not having seen the moth, I have 
no means of knowing whether the transformation to a pupa is undergone 
in the stem of the plant or in the ground. 

Besides the noxious insects described, there are many others which 
future observations will bring more prominently into notice, but many 
of which are, at present, too little known to enable me to give reli- 
able information concerning them; and will close this description by 
merely reminding the Ohio agriculturist that all the labor which is 
bestowed upon a practical study of entomology will be amply repaid by 
the increased ability to cope with the annoying and dangerous enemies 
to human happiness, which the seemingly insignificant bug, beetle, and 
fly, may prove to be. 



636 



THE WHEAT PLANT. 




Fia. 78. 
blance, and can be easily identified it* discovered 



The annexed cut represents an Euro- 
pean species — Aphidius avence — Fig. 78, 
(1 natural size, 2 magnified), which is 
parasitic on the aphis which feeds on 
wheat. As the latter insect seems not 
to be known here, at least to any extent, 
and we have never heard of any being 
found, it is not of course an American 
insect. The Aphidida? are, however, well 
represented here. Dr. Fitch describes 
several species parasitic on the green- 
flies, which feed on several of our fruit 
trees, etc. All have a general resem- 




' 4 

Fig. 79. 
About the first of August (1859) Mr. Geo. Heyl brought to my office 



NEW INSECT. 637 

(in the State House) several heads of the "Dayton" or " Whig" wheat, 
as samples for a cabinet which I am collecting. Upon the glume of one 
of the heads I observed nine small shining black globules, as represented 
at (1) in the annexed engraving. Struck with their singular beauty, I 
placed them under the microscope with a low power, when new beauties 
and wonders presented themselves, as represented at (3) ; (2) being the 
glume to which they were attached. They were not only attached to the 
glume by their bases, but to each other by a very delicate filament, as fine 
as a spider's thread. On removing one of the globules and placing it 
under a higher power, it appeared as represented at (4) and (5). The por- 
tion inclosed by the spines or fimbria (a, a, a, 5), was discovered to be a 
movable plate with a convex surface ; this plate was removed, and the 
contents of the globule emptied upon the stage of the microscope. The 
contents were a transparent sack or larvse case (11), which, upon being 
opened, was found to contain a young insect (12) broken into fragments. 
No. 6 is one of the fimbria (a, 5), highly magnified. The antennas (7) 
more strongly resemble those of the Cecidomyia tritici than those of 
any other insect with which I am acquainted; they appear to be made 
up of ovoid globes garnished with hairs and strung on a delicate fila- 
ment, but they lack one or two in number to correspond with Bazin r s 
description of the Cecidomyia tritici. (See Ante.) The wings (9 upper, 
10 lower) are destitute of nervures, and answer the description precisely 
of those of the Platygaster punctiger as given by M. Sichel, M. D. (see 
ante), both in shape, relative size, and in being furnished with short 
prickly hairs. The leg (8) is also that of the P. punctiger. 

The body of the globule (4) is of a very delicate texture, readily 
broken, but has also an internal membrane or lining of an exceedingly 
delicate texture. 

I have hazarded to express the opinion to my friends that it is the 
larva of the C. tritici partially transformed into a Platygaster. I am 
led to this conclusion from the fact that in several of the globules I 
found two wings only, in outline corresponding with those of the C. tri- 
tici, and those had nervures ; — no two of the bodies were precisely alike, 
and the legs of some strongly resembled those of the C. tritici, while 
others resembled those of the Platygaster. 

It is perhaps indiscreet to publish so imperfect and unsatisfactory an 
account at present, but by so doing I trust that I am performing one 
stop toward the accomplishment of the main object in view; namely, to 
direct attention to the study of insects that prey upon the wheat plant. 
I am the more encouraged in this act of temerity when I reflect that not 
many years ago the most learned men in Geology published plates and 



638 THE WHEAT PLANT. 

descriptions of the Lepidodendron (a fossil tree) under the name and 
supposition that it was a fossil fish I 

It has been suggested that this insect is a Cynips (gall-fly) ; I am 
however, not yet prepared to accept this suggestion. 

Should this eventually prove to be the larva of the Cecidomyia tritici, 
then one other method presents itself of avoiding the ravages of this 
destructive insect; namely, by burning the chaff. 



HISTORY, CULTURE AND VARIETIES 

OF 

INDIAN COKN. 



HISTORY OF CORN. 641 



CHAPTER XXII. 

HISTORY OF CORN. 

On page 53, a brief history of corn was given, in connection with 
that of some of the other more prominent cereals. A more elaborate 
article, in relation to its early history, appeared desirable. The sub- 
joined history of the corn plant has been compiled from various sources, 
and although many of the writers have arrived at different conclusions, 
each one appears to have been actuated by an honest desire to arrive at 
the truth only. 

The history of the corn plant has been very critically examined and 
carefully compiled by Mons. Bonafous, a member of the Royal Agricul- 
tural Society of France, from whose elaborate folio work, "Histoire natu- 
relle du Maize," much of the material of the present account was 
obtained. 

NATIVE COUNTRY OF THE MAIZE. 

History sheds so few beams of light on the origin of the maize, that 
it is as yet doubtful whether this most prolific and beautiful of ce- 
reals originated in the Old or the New World. According to some 
writers, the introduction of maize into Europe is connected with the 
discovery of America; in the opinion of others, it may be traced back 
to earlier ages. Bock, the first botanist who spoke of the maize, in a 
German book printed in 1532, forty j^ears after the discovery of Amer- 
ica, says that this plant was brought by Arabia Fortunata into Germany, 
and that it was named wheat of Asia, tall wheat, and tall reed (tipha 
magna). Toward the same time, Ruel and Fuchs confirmed the assertion 
that it came from the East. "This wheat," says Fuchs, "has come from 
foreign countries; from Asia and Grecia it passed into Germany, and 
which caused it to be named wheat of Turkey ; because the Turks now 
hold the whole of Asia, and it is on account of the country whence it 
was derived that the Germans call it Turlcish wheat.'" Donicer, Taberna- 
Montanus, and other botanists, repeat this assertion. The latter gives 
to the maize the name of Turkish wheat of Asia (Frumentum Turcicum 
Asiaticum). 
54 



642 THE CORN PLANT. 

Being reproduced toward the end of the eighteenth century by Amo- 
reux, and later by Reynier, one of the learned men on the history of 
agriculture, this opinion found new supporters, who deny to America 
the boon of having introduced the maize. Ml Michaud, in the History 
of the Crusades; Daru, in his Republic of Venice; M. de Sismondi, in his 
Universal Biography ; and M. de Gregory, in the Annals of Agriculture, 
avail themselves of a Latin charter of the thirteenth century to set forth 
the assertion that the maize was known to the Old AVorld before the dis- 
covery of America. According to that charter, published by Molinari, 
it was within the year 1204, at one of the epochs when the nations of 
Europe mingled with those of the East, that two companions in arms 
of Bonifacius III., Marquis of Montferrat, brought back from Asia- 
Minor (Anatolia), a kind of white and yellow grain, which they gave 
to the inhabitants of Incisa, a burgh of High Montferrat, under the 
name of me lig a. The magistrates, remarks the historian of the Crusades, 
received with solemnity the innocuous gifts of victory, and caused to be 
blessed on the altars a produce which was one day to enrich the fields 
of Italy. The word meliga, which is read in that charter, and those of 
melica and melya, are also found in divers authentic documents of the 
middle ages. The latin word melica is again met with in one of the 
ancient chronicles, published by Muratori; and Crescenzio, the father of 
Italian agriculture, in his treatise of rural economy, written over a hun- 
dred years before the first voyage of Christopher Columbus, says that 
in Italy they raised two species of milica, one red, another white. 
Crescenzio explains the manner of cultivating the plant which he calls 
milica, and that mode is the same which is now used for the maize. 

Again, we read that a Portuguese author, Santa Rosa de Viterbo, 
infers from a deed of the year 1289, that maize was known during the 
thirteenth century, in Portugal ; the deed reads as follows: "In a will 
of S. Simon of Junqueira, dated 1289, it is said: Bequeathed to Stevan 
John of Perafita, or to his heirs, one quarter of milhom.' 1 Such an infer- 
ence is in accordance with the opinion of Valuarel and other authors, 
who affirm that the Arabs brought the maize into Spain. But a stronger 
testimony is offered to our inquiries, by the very image of this plant 
found in the Chinese work of Li-chi-tchin, composed toward the 
middle of the sixteenth century. The few years intervening between 
the publication of this book and the discovery of America, scarcely 
admits the supposition that the introduction of maize into China was 
due to that discovery, because every body knows how secluded the 
Chinese are; whose slowness in adopting foreign cultuie is prover- 
bial. John Crawfurd, who resided in the island of Java during nine 
years, is inclined to believe that the maize cultivated since the earliest 



.MAIZE IN EGYPTIAN TOMltS. 648 

ages in the Asiatic islands, situate under the equator, between Conti- 
nental Asia and Australia, may have passed from these islands into 
China and spread as far as the Himalaya, where Heber observed it. 
"Maize," says J. Crawfurd, "is next to rice the principal produce 
among the great tribes of the Indian Archipelago. The word Jagxing, 
which is believed to correspond to indigenous, is the expression under 
which this plant is known from one extremity of the Archipelago to 
the other; there could, therefore, be little doubt that a single tribe must 
have instructed all others in that cultivation, as we saw it. was done with 
that of rice. Such a fact can not be demonstrated, but we are allowed 
to think that maize was cultivated in the East Indies before the discovery 
of America, and that this plant is an indigenous product. The name 
of maize has no analogous word in the American tongues, although, 
concerning animal and vegetable exotic productions, they have invariably 
adopted, in all the Indian Archipelago, either the primitive name, or such 
as to show the origin of the plant. It suffices to quote as an example 
the pepper plant, the mangoo {inancjifera I/idica), the hairy kidney bean 
( phaselous Max, D. C); the ewe which was introduced by the Hindoo; 
the orange-tree and the arachide, natives of China ; the cotfee-tree, 
received from America through European nations." 

Finally, a conclusive proof of the maize existing in the Old World, at 
one of the earliest epochs, would be its presence within the monuments 
of the highest antiquity. M. Rifaud, known by excavations which he 
had made in Egypt, affirms to have found grains of that plant within 
the tomb of a mummy discovered at Thebes in 1819. The following 
details extracted from the unpublished narrative of this traveler, and 
directed to me, deserve of being literally communicated. 

" The grains and the ear of maize which I have discovered at Gournac 
(Thebes), were found, says M. Rifaud, under the head of a mummy, 
laid on a wooden cushion. The grains were within an earthen bowl, 
the stem, eighteen inches long, still preserved its leaves. On the left 
part of the mummy were seen small fruits, named in Arabian nabac, 
mingled with some grains of wheat and bulbs of a plant wherefrom the 
inhabitants manufacture their beads. On the right part were aquatic 
vegetables, named in Arabian resche ; there were also five or six loaves 
of wheat bread. A garland and a crown of lotus blossoms ornamented 
the corpse of the mummy. The coffin, made of sycamore wood, covered 
with hieroglyphics, was inclosed within a sarcophagus of basalt; three 
hundred and ninety small figures of baked earth surrounded the mum 
my. The wooden box was five feet seven inches long, and the basalt 
sarcophagus was about six feet. It was at the western part of Theba' 



644 THE CORN PLANT. 

on the declivity of the Libic range, that I made this discovery, alto- 
gether accidental, since the little valley wherein the tomb lay concealed 
had been explored by the Arabians during several years." 

Such are the authorities and principal documents that may be brought 
forth to support the claim that the maize originated in the Old World. 
But before declaring any decisive opinion, I will present in the same 
order those which might establish the American origin of that plant, 
and with this assumption, show that the name of Indian wheat came 
to our forefathers, from the idea that the new continent was a part of 
the Asiatic regions, comprised then under the general name of India. 

At first, against the assertion of Bock, Ruel, De Fuchs, and other 
botanists, who pretend that maize came from the East, we may array the 
opposite affirmation of no less celebrated writers, such as Camerarius 
and Mathioli; the former in a work printed in 1588, invalidates Fuchs' 
opinion by assuming that maize was brought from the West Indies, and 
not from Asia; the latter, a most learned man, speaks thus about that 
plant : 

" We may reasonably include among the wheat that which is wrong- 
fully called Turkish wheat; I say wrongfully, because it ought to be 
named Indian wheat (formento Indiano), and not Turkish wheat, because 
it came to us from the West Indies, and not from Asia or Turkey, as 
Fuchs believes." 

Dodoens, Ray, and other botanists, either contemporaneous or subse- 
quent, declared that Fuchs was mistaken, and that maize came from the 
New World. 

Furthermore, the name of Turkish wheat, or wheat of Turkey, given 
to maize probably at the time of its introduction, and which it still pre- 
serves, indicates no better its origin than the name of wheat of Egypt 
(misrbogday), given to it by the Turks, or dour ah of Syria, by the 
Egyptians, and Sicilian grain, by the Tuscans; while it is called Indian 
wheat, in Sicily; wheat of Rome, in Lorraine and Vosges; Spanish wheat, 
at the foot of the Pyrenees; wheat of Guinea or Barbary, in Provence. 
These names, taken from the countries in which maize was cultivated at 
various periods into neighboring regions, prove no more conclusively its 
place of nativity than the names of Italian poplar and rice of Carolina, 
demonstrate the spontaneous growth of the former in Italy, of the latter 
in America. The name of Turkish wheat seems to me as improper in 
regard to maize, as the word turkey (fowl of Turkey), used by the 
English to designate a cock of India, a native of America. 

Some authors, M. Dumeril among them, have thought that maize had 
been named Turkish wheat on account of the long silk with which ears 



ITALIAN MAIZE. 04;") 

of female corn are garnished. It is useless to combat this explanation; 
the costume of wearing plumes on the head being not peculiarly and 
exclusively Turkish. 

Let us examine, now, whether maize is well indicated by the words 
meliga, which is read in the charter of Incisa, and milica, which Cres- 
cenzio and others used. 

The minute description of the species of grain brought from the East 
into Italy, at the beginning of the thirteenth century seems, it is true, 
to answer for grain of maize, the basis of which inserted into the ears 
axis is white, while the outer portion is yellow in many varieties; but 
according to the interpretation of the word meligaby the learned author 
of the flora of Egypt* the same may be applied to sorgho or millet of 
India [holcus sorghum, L.), the grains of which pass in some varieties, 
from yellow to w'lite. When we interrogate other authors upon that 
score, we are answered by Cardan, from the sixteenth century, that the 
wheat cultivated at the Western Indies, under the name mais, approaches 
by its stature the plant designated in Italy by the name of milica or 
sorghum. At the same time Caspar Bauhin said that the Lombards 
named melaga, the plant known as saggina in Tuscany. Mathioli, who, 
without doubt, did not confound the two plants, assures us that the 
one known under the name of melega, was called melica, in Lombardy, 
saggina in Tuscany, sorgho in many regions of Italy. George di Turre, 
an Italian botanist of the seventeenth century, says also with Cardan, 
that the maize or Turkish wheat, imported into Italy, a few years since, 
produced a stem similar to that of the plant named meliga or sorghum. 
The academicians of Crusca, whose authority bears a great weight in 
regard to language, render, in their vocabulary, the Italian word meliga 
(in Latin melica) by saggina, finally Targioni-Tozzetti, author of a botan- 
ical dictionary, justly esteemed, translates the words holcus sorghum, L., 
by melega, melica, melliga, miglio indiano, panico indiano. 

It is only in the Piedmontese dialect that the name of melia or meliga 
is given both to the zea and holcus, nevertheless distinguishing the latter 
plant from the former by the words melia rossa or melia da ramasse (red 
maize, or broom maize) ; while in Italian language maize receives the 
name of grans Turco, sorgo Tares, formentons, granons, grano Siciliano, 
grano d' India, and so forth. 

Therefore, neither the charter of Incisa, nor the quotations from 
Crescenzio and others, can decide the question, as long as it shall not 
be proved that meliga or melica is a true maize. The grain brought 

* Description of Egypt, published by order of Napoleon I., Nat. History, Vol. 2, seo 
the splendid copy given by France to the United States. Smithsonian Institute. 



CAG THE CORN PLANT. 

by the Crusaders, might be a variety of sorgho or millet of India, then 
unknown in the Montferrat. 

Again, Crawfurd's opinion upon the Indian origin of the maize, how 
well grounded soever it may appear, is counteracted by M. de Hum- 
boldt. " There is no doubt," says this universal savant, " in the minds 
of botanists, that mais or Turkish wheat is a truly American wheat, and 
chat the new world gave it to the old world. When Europeans dis- 
covered America, zea maiz, in Azteck language thaolli, in Haitian ?nahiz, 
in Guichua cara, was already cultivated from the southern region of 
Chili as far as Pennsylvania. . According to a tradition of the Azteck 
nations, the Toultecks introduced, during the seventh century of our era, 
the cultivation of maize, cotton, and pimento, into Mexico. It might, 
however, be true those various branches of agriculture were practised 
before the Toultecks, and that this nation, whose advanced civilization 
was extolled by historians, did nothing but spread it with success. 
Hernandez informs us that the very Otomites, a barbarous, wandering 
tribe, planted the maize. The cultivation of that plant was therefore 
extended even beyond the Rio Grande of Santiago, formerly named 
Tololotlan." 

Indeed, no doubt can be entertained that the maize was cultivated 
among the Americans, when P. Martyr, Ercelia, John de Lery, Laet, 
Torquemada, and others, relate to us that the first Europeans who landed 
upon the new world saw there, among other marvels, a gigantic wheat 
with long smooth blades, elegant stem, and golden ear; this marvelous 
wheat was the maize. Several nations celebrated its harvest amid 
religious ceremonies; at Cusco, the holy city, abode of the Incas, the 
virgins of the Sun prepared with that precious corn the bread of 
sacrifice, tinged with the victim's blood. In Mexico, they formed with 
it idols, which the priest broke, and distributed the fragments thereof 
to the multitude. A goddess Ceres, worshiped under the name of cin- 
teutl, derived from centli or maize, in Mexican language, received as an 
offering the harvest's first fruits. Every nation in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, 
Orinoco's plains, Antilla Islands, were nourished with that grain. 
Maize, cultivated over a space ninety degrees south and north of the 
Equator, was the wheat of the new hemisphere; it was there used as 
money or standard of exchange; and the law, among Mexicans, con- 
demned to death whoever stole seven ears of maize. 

In the books of Homer and Theophrastus, people believed to trace 
the maize by the name zeia; in calling it zea, Linnaeus propagated that 
notion. Andres de Laguna, in his commentary on Dioscorides, Lobel 
and Olivier de Serres, supposed that the black millet brought from 
India into Italy during the time of Pliny was the maize. Lobel gave 



PERSIAN ACCOUNT OF ORIGIN OF MAIZE. 647 

the figure of the maize under the name of milium indicum Plinianum ; 
but these conjectures are not well grounded. The zeia of the Greeks, 
as admitted by M. Fee, the faithful interpreter of Theocrites and Virgil, 
was assuredly the zea of the Latin, now a kind of wheat named spelt 
(L. iriticum spella). The characters assigned to zeia by Theophrastes, 
are so positive that they can not be misunderstood; and the plant 
with black grains indicated by Pliny, should be the black sorgho, the 
tine of the negroes [holcus niger. Gml.), which is distinguished by the 
black color of the shell which covers the grain; it was, perhaps, a 
variety of mil (miglio), spoken of by Anquillara during the sixteenth 
century. 

The celebrated orientalist, d'Herbelot, quotes a sentence from Mirk- 
hond, a Persian historiographer of the fifteenth century, the translation 
of which, if faithful, would leave no doubt as to the maize being known 
to the ancient world before the discovery of America. According to 
d'Herbelot, Mirkhond says: Rous, Japet's eighth son, caused to be sown 
within the islands of Caspian sea, the wheat that we call wheat of 
Turkey, and which the Turks name still in their language rous and 
boulgar. In order to verify this quotation, the book of Mirkhond at the 
Royal Libi'ary of Paris was examined, and ascertained that the Per- 
sian author, at the place indicated by d'Herbelot, relates that Khozar, 
son of Japet, caused to be sown on Volga's banks, some Kaveres, a 
kind of corn which the dictionaries render by millet, yellow millet, mil- 
let of Khatay ; and that Rous, Khozar 's brother, caused to be cultivated 
on Volga's islands the borgo?i, which signifies, according to the same 
dictionaries, a kind of hollow tree from which flutes are made. The 
word borgon would then have been confounded with borgoul or borgul, 
rendered by authors as alica, f rumen turn seu triticum, far decorticatum ; 
and from the word bolgour, d'Herbelot would have made boulgar, which 
vocabularies translated as Lather, and not as any grain whatever. As to 
the word rous meaning maize or grain, I found nowhere an expression 
to support d'Herbelot's account. Either this author has drawn from a 
source different from that which he indicates, or a strange confusion 
befel the documents which he had collected. 

Harmentier, and other subsequent writers, suggested as a negative 
proof, the silence of the voyagers who visited Africa and Asia in ages 
previous to the discovery of America ; but these travelers having not 
explored all regions of Asia and Africa, it may be objected that they did 
not see those where maize was cultivated. 

Besides, could we not trace the maize from a period of Diodorus of 
Siculus, when that historian relates that a Grecian adventurer, named 



648 THE CORN PLANT. 

Iambol, visited, in the sea of India, an island where a kind of reed grew 
which abundantly bore a precious grain, similar, in its form, with that 
of the orob. " They gather it," said Iambol, " and they allow it to macer- 
ate in water, until it obtains the bulk of a dove's egg; then after pound- 
ing and kneading it with the hands, they make loaves which are baked 
in ovens, and that bread has a very sweet savour." That grain, 
unknown to Diodorus, might be the maize, and the island whereat Iam- 
bol observed it. was Taprobane of antiquity, now Ceylon, or Sumatra, 
according to various opinions. 

To the above conflicting authorities many more could be added: 
evidently there is no lack of facts or deeds for their support; but those 
which I have gathered seem to me sufficient to base the following prop- 
ositions: 

1st. The charter of Incisa, and the quoted authors failing to estab- 
lish, in a positive manner, that the plant named mcliga, or melicd, was 
really the maize, these testimonies aiford no complete proof. 

2d. The dissenting opinions of the botanists, during the sixteenth 
and following centuries, about the origin of the maize, do nothing but 
cast doubt on the Eastern or American origin which is attributed to it. 

3d. If it were certain, as historians assert, that maize was cultivated 
in America, when Europeans landed there at the end of the fifteenth cen- 
tury, it Avould appear equally true that this plant was in full cultivation 
within India at anterior epochs. 

4th. The treatise of Natural History, by Li-chi-tchin, written toward 
the middle of the sixteenth century, marks the existence of the maize in 
China, within a time so close to the discovery of America, that this event 
must not be connected with the introduction of that plant into Asia. 

5th. In conclusion, the maize found at Thebes, within a mummy's 
coffin, after a lapse of thirty or forty centuries, would be a precious but 
solitary relic, which would prove that maize existed in Africa since the 
earliest time. 

These various points being admitted, there is enough to conclude that 
maize was known to the old world, before the discovery of America; 
that probably the Arabs, or the crusaders introduced it first into Europe; 
and that subsequently the discovery of America gave occasion for another 
introduction, and wider extent of cultivation of this plant, heretofore 
confined within narrow bounds. 

But let it be granted that the presence of the maize, within the two 
worlds, may be attributed to its spontaneous production on both hemi- 
spheres, or one of them only; and that, in this last conjecture, it may 
have migrated from one to the other with their ancient nations, it is 



BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OF CORN. 649 

probable that the first dwelling-place of the maize will remain uncertain 
until we discover the place where it grows without culture, granting 
that the revolutions which the earth has experienced render such a dis- 
covery not impossible. 

BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OF CORN. 
Zea Mays or Indian corn forms a genus of grasses characterized by 
its monoecious flowers — (that is, it has both male and female flowers, 
while the flowers of the wheat plant are hermaphrodite, or male and 
female included, and each forming a portion of the same flower — ) form- 
ing a terminal panicle (tassel) ; each spikelet containing two flowers, 
each with two palae and three stamens. The female or fertile flowers 
(ear) form a long, dense spike, completely enveloped in a number of 
sheathing floral leaves (husks), from which the thread-like stigmites 
protrude to a great length; the spikelets, as in the males, contain two 
flowers, but they have no stamens; one flower has an ovary with a long 
style ending in the above-mentioned thread-like forked stigmate; the 
other flower has only two empty pales. 

Explanation of the Plate. 

Young ear of maize released from its spaihce. 

Fig. 1, one of the axillary boughs bearing female blossoms set in the 
shape of an ear ; every bough bears from one to four ears ; this 
specimen is, in the flowering period, exposed to view by the 
removal of its lower spathae, and by the opening of the two 
upper ones (b. b). 
a, a, bundle of styles, the top of which only is seen when the spathae 
b incloses the ear; each style is inserted upon one grain of the 
ear, but they are removed in order to show the arrangement of 
the grains on the cob which supports them ; this order is liable 
to many variations. The grains are often closely set two by 
two, and form longitudinal lines straight or spirally, winding 
from left to right; the number of these rows is variable, but 
always even. 

Fig. 2, Male blossom isolated a little magnified. 

a, bi-glumed calix containing 

6, c, two blossoms somewhat differing in form and size with their 
glumes; the fixed blossom c has two small glumes about equal, 
sharp, and ciliated at the top. 

b, the pediceled blossom has also two glumes, smaller and uneven ; 
the innermost is shortened with a double-pointed summit; the 
external one is sharp and shorter. 

Fig. 3, The three isolated stamina;, showing at their basis the two smail- 

55 



650 



THE CORN PLANT. 




Tig. 5. 



DESCRIPTION 01' THE CORN FLOWER. C51 

est glumes ( or glumelluhe), e e, swollen and greenish at the basis, 
and surmounted with a white, scarious truncated membrane. 
d, d, stamens. 
Fig. 4, two ovaries, surrounded with 

c, their shells fastened to a portion of 

d, the cob, each of them surmounted with 

a, 6, their style, laminated, hairy, greenish, grooved in the middle 
through its length, which indicates two styles soldered into one 
naturally divided at the top into stigmatae; sometimes there is 
but one of them, the other being abortive. 
Fig. 5, female blossom of which the glumes and glumellse are forcibly 
opened in order to show. 

1, the whole ovary and 

2, its two glumella? so deeply bi-lobed, that we would be inclined 
to believe them to be four in number. 

3, 3, two of the three subulated points which are three glumellulse 

situated at the basis of the ovary. 

4, 5, are the neuter blossom of which 5, the smaller glumellae, is laid 

on the larger external one, 4. 
6, 6, two large glumes or calyx containing the two blossoms. 
Fig. 6, Vertical section magnified of the perisperm, 8, and embryo ; 

9, thickness of the cotyledon; 10, plumula; 11, radicle; 7, cavity 
variable, but always placed toward the center of the perisperrn. 
We always find at the lower extremity of the embryo a some- 
what large plate, black, thin, membranous, inert, which was not 
as yet pointed out, and may be the remnants of the ovulary 
bag; 13, its place and section. 
The maize is a stout, erect annual, growing from the hight of four 
to sixteen feet, according to the variety, soil and season. The leaves 
are from one to .two feet long, and from two to three inches broad- 
The panicle (tassel) is divided into long branches on short stalks. The 
female spikes (ear) are generally two or three in number, placed at or 
below the middle of the stem ; they are often over a foot long and 
thicker than the wrist. The axis (cob) is a thick, hard pith, on which 
the grain is very closely packed in a number of regular longitudinal 
rows, differing in color, size, and form, according to variety. 

Ever since the settlement of the United States, corn has been the 
most prominent cereal cultivated in the Middle, Western, and Southern 
States. From the earliest settlements in Ohio, it has been the most im- 
portant crop in the southern portion of the State ; indeed, it must be 
regarded as inferior to no other crop, for the reason that for family use it 
occupies a conspicuous position, and fur wintering and fattening domestic 



652 



THE CORN PLANT. 



animals, is indispensable. Then, too, the leaves and stalks furnish a 
fodder very much superior to the straw of any other cereal. 

There is no cereal grown with less difficulty than corn, yet there is no 
other that repays good culture so well ; at the same time it can not 
be denied that its perfection depends in a much greater degree upon 
the season than any other crop. As a general thing, however, if July 
and August prove favorable, a good crop may safely be relied on — from 
the fact that early frosts and late-continued rains, like those of 1857, do 
not occur once in a decade of years — they are, therefore, the exception 
and not the rule. 

Mr. Salisbury, the analytical chemist of the New York State Board 
of Agriculture, says: " Very little has been done by chemists, which is 
calculated to throw light upon the composition of corn. All the analy- 
ses which have hitherto been published, are incorrect as well as 
imperfect." He, therefore, commenced a complete series of detailed 
analyses, commencing with the plant when it weighed, in a dry state, 
only 26 grains, and analyzed specimens, of which each succeeding one 
was from five to eight days longer growth than the preceding one, until 
the corn was fully ripe. From his detailed and elaborate statements, pub- 
lished in the Natural History Survey of New York, 1 have compiled the 
following analyses. The annexed table gives the amount in grains which 
the several parts of the plant weighed when dried, also the amount of 
water which they contained, and the amount of ashes they produced. 
The plants were taken up respectively on the 5th of July, 4th of August, 
and 18th of October, at which latter period the corn had fully matured. 





W 




n 




H 


i >-3 




ra 




72 


f 1 


co 


H 




DC 


<H 






o 


p 


o 






c 


V 


p 






July 5. Hig't 


P 

Si 

00 




~ 


00 

* 
Jo 


■a 


TJl 


5 

SB. 


2 

Q 

GO 


9 

CO 


CO 


. 


- 


B 

3 

o 


of plant, 36 












W 


t? 










7J 






GO 


inches. 
























n 

55 

% 

DD 


— 








Water 








1 R 


92.5 
8.1 




181.1 
166.0 


804. 

63. 




* 






Dry Matter,. 


6.2 




A.ah 






0.6 


i'J. 




15.0 


6.7 












Avcust 4. 


Water 




$96.4 


116.6 


62.5 




2610. 


2079. 


2180.5 




629.5 




Dry Matter,. 




3 i.C 


" 68.5 


654.5 




614. 


631. 


380.$ 




70.:, 




Atih 




3.5 


4.7 


2914 




;;•■> 


58.9 


12.22 




. 4. 




OCTuBEU 18. 
























Water 


3V4.6 


2&5. 


54.9 


86 1.3 


2425.9 


526.7 


948.7 


529.2 


354.6 


66.4 


2T;.r; 


Pry Matter,. 


i25. 1 


211. 


78.1 


159.7 


360. 


218.3 


635.3 


2 S3.S 


44.4 


1 1.2 


41.1 


A-i 


80 




-'.'.I 




1.2 


11.2 


'. 


6.6 


2 


>.;, 


79.8 


13.4 


1.2 




.9 


2.8 



70.3 

19.1 
1.6 



427.6 

128.4 

5.3 



ANALYSIS OF THE CORN PLANT. 



653 



OBSERVATIONS, TART3 AND PROPORTIONS. 

October 18 — corn ripe. The amount of water in the stalks, leaves, 
and sheathes has gradually decreased since the 13th of September. The 
kernels have gradually increased in specific gravity since their first 
appearance. 

RELATION OF THE PARTS OF PLANTS TO EACH OTHER. 



Tassels, 

Top Stalk, 

Butt Stalk, 

Sheathes, 

Leaves, 

Sheathes of Husks, 
Stalks of Ears,.... 

Silks, 

Roots, 

Kernels, 

Cob, 



QUANTITY. 



133 grains. 

1026 " 

2786 " 

744 « 

1584 " 

763 " 

299 " 

81 " 

556 " 

3468 " 

1012 " 



12452 grains. 



PER 

CENTAGE. 



1.068 

8.239 
22.375 

5.975 
12.721 

6.126 

2.401 
.651 

4.465 
27.852 

8.127 



100. 



INORGANIC ANALYSIS OF THE PLANT. 



October 18, 
Corn Ripe. 



Carbonic Acid,... 

Silicic Acid, 

Sulphuric Acid,... 
Phosphoric Acid,. 

Phosphates, 

Lime, 

Magnesia, 

Potash. 

Soda, 

Chlorine, 

Organic Acids,... 



w 

erf- 

7t 



1.8 
12.8 
1.07 



15.1 

2.8 

0.9 

16.2 

24.6 

10.9 

3.2 



OQ 



trace. 
51.2 
12.2 



9.7 
2.1 
0.8 
7.4 
12.4 
2.9 
trace. 






c. 







trace. 

47.6 

6.6 



26.2 

0.4 

trace 

3.5 

9 

\ 5.5 



4. 

58.6 
4.8 



5.8 
4.5 
0.8 
7.3 
8.5 
2.6 
2.2 



P 



61.0 



9.8 
2.3 
0.6 
6.8 
8.8 

10.3 



23.6 



11.8 
4.i 1 
1.0 

11.8 

25.4 

22. 



> 

0Q 

o 

•is 



trace. 
8.5 
0.5 

60.3 



.07 
6.5 
23.1 
3.6 
0.3 
5.7 



*The analyses of Tassels and Boots are not complete. 



654 



THE CORN PLANT. 



The amount in pounds of elements removed in the entire crop of an 
acre of corn, yielding an average return, is as follows: 



Phos- 



Silica, .... 
Earthy 

phates, 

Lime, 

Magnesia, 

Potash, 

Soda, 

Chlorine, 

Sulphuric Acid, 



Total,. 



p 
on 

09 


CO 

E 


r 1 

CO 

p 
■< 

C6 


Sheathes, .. 


c 

00 


o 

o 

& 

4.67 


co 

P 

on 

5.93 


5.01 


8.78 


82.68 


39.66 


26.92 


0.82 


1036 


29.27 


7.54 


14.83 


8.22 


22.18 


0.19 


1.92 


9.40 


1.58 


0.25 


0.10 


0.10 


0.05 


0.64 


1.91 


0.C8 


0.04 


0.30 


1.50 


0.57 


11.08 


19.70 


5.57 


1.98 


12.31 


14.95 


0.74 


17.09 


13.14 


9.26 


5.55 


2.03 


14.11 


0.19 


7.49 


15.07 


2.20 


314 


0.04 


0.30 


0.33 

8.02 


7.38 


6.4« 


8.92 
75.35 


3.77 

56.49 


0.11 


2.74 


64.77 


177.64 


27.83 


61 R4 



o 



lbs. | 
173| 

93 
13 

5 
66 
61 

28 
29 



471 



oz. 
12.4 

3.9 
9.2 
0.7 
2.9 

15.1 
7.3 

11.6 



15.6 



An organic analysis of the Ohio Dent Corn, which is one of the largest 
varieties of this cereal grown, is as follows : 



Starch, 

Gluten, 

Oil, 

Albumen, 

Caseine, 

Dextrine, 

Fiber, 

Sugar and Extrac- 
tive, 

Water, 





o 

3* 
3 


White Flint 


Eight-rowed Yellow. 


w 

CD 
CO 

o 

o 

a 




-3 

-i 


3 
-. 
i 


*[ 


■d 

3 
3 

3 

-J 
3 


41.85 


40.34 


30.29 


11.60 


48.90 


46.90 


4.62 


7.69 


5.60 


4.62 


"1 unde- 

J trmd. 


9.24* 


3.88 


4.68 


3.90 


3.60 


6.96 


2.64 


3.40 


.0.00 


14.30 


8.72 


5.02 


1.32 


0.50 


2.20 


5.84 


2.32 


2.50 


5.40 


2.90 


4.61 


24.82 


2.00 


2.25 


21.36 


18.01 


26.80 


11.24 


14.00 


8.50 


10.00 


8.30 


5.20 


14.62 


10.00 


7.02 


10.00 


14.00 


13.40 


10.32 


13.68 


12.12 


10 


1.07 


99.72 


98.00 


100.93 


» 


9.62 


99 


.51 



W2, 

g a 

t)GO 

c o 



36.06 
5.00 
3.44 
4.42 
1.92 
1.30 

18.50 

7.25 
15.02 

100.05 



There is no plant, whether cereal or other, which so readily hybrid- 
izes or intei mixes as corn. Every one who has grown corn, is well 



* Including Sugar. 



■j- Exclusive of Sugar. 



CULTURE OF CORN. 655 

aware of the difficulty of keeping the varieties pure. If a single red 
grain is planted with white or yellow grains, all of the corn, not unfre- 
quently, within the space of a rod in each direction from the red 
stalk, will have more or less red grains on the cob. Several experi- 
ments are recorded of the impregnation of one variety by the pollen of 
five or six distinct other varieties, and when the ear matured, there were 
five, six, or seven varieties of kernels on the same ear. The pollen from 
the tassel is the male portion of the plant, and the silk from the ear is 
the female portion ; it follows, necessarily, that if the tassel of the red 
corn referred to above, be removed before it is mature, that there will 
then be no pollen to be shed on the surrounding stalks, and conse- 
quently it can not propagate its variety. If the silk be removed as soon 
as it protrudes through the husk, it.can not be impregnated, and although 
the ears may perhaps produce grains of corn, yet they will be deprived 
of all germinating power. 

As with the wheat plant, climate, soil, and culture have materially 
modified the corn plant, and produced a great number of varieties, each 
of which has habits peculiar to itself — has, in a word, as much a fixity 
of type as any variety of wheat; but it readily acclimates, and in the 
process of acclimation has its typical character much modified. 

I have very little doubt that the Oregon corn, as it is called, is the 
original corn plant of America. In this variety each grain is enveloped 
in a separate husk, or sheath, but when it is cultivated with other varie- 
ties, for a series of ten or twelve years, these husks disappear; the cob 
grows larger and compact, nnd in every respect resembles the ordinary 
corn. 

CULTURE OF CORN. 

Corn thrives best on a sandy loam, or bottom lands; in a stiff clay it 
never succeeds so well, although some good crops have been grown on 
clays which have been long in a state of cultivation. The bottom lands, 
like those of the Scioto, Miami, and Muskingum valleys, appear to be best 
adapted for the growth of this cereal, in its greatest perfection. Corn 
succeeds well on lands after several crops of wheat also, but farmers 
generally prefer breaking up "sod ground " for a good crop of corn. 
Practice indicates that a soil rich in humus, or decayed and decaying 
vegetable matter, is much better adapted to corn than that destitute of 
this material; for this reason it is good policy, to say the least, if not 
really advisable, to grow corn after wheat, in order to remove the veget- 
able matter formed by the roots of the wheat; for the same reason it 
succeeds admirably on sod ground, because it removes the humus created 
by the roots of the grasses. 



656 THE CORN PLANT. 

The ground should be well manured and finely pulverized to insure a 
good crop, and this is the reason why loamy soils are uniformly more 
productive than the clays, for the reason that there is less cohesion 
among the particles of the soil, whereas clay, as is well knowD, is exceed- 
ingly tenacious. 

It will flourish on the best wheat land; but wheat will not succeed 
well on the best corn land. To grow corn on land that will produce 
good wheat, is not, as a general rule, to be commended. 

I have said that corn will succeed on land too low for wheat. This 
is true; but corn requires a dry soil. It is a mistake to suppose that all 
high land is dry, and all low land wet. Mr. Swan, near Geneva, New 
York, who laid over fifty miles of drain-tiles on his farm, found that the 
highest part of his farm required as much again draining as the lower 
portions. On low land, a few open ditches are often sufficient to carry 
off all the water; but on a springy hillside, thorough underdraining is 
necessary. 

Land for corn must be dry. We recollect, says the Genessce Farmer, 
walking through a magnificent field of corn on the thoroughly under- 
drained farm of our friend John Johnston. One of the underdrains was 
choked up, and there the crop was a failure. Corn delights in a loose, dry, 
warm soil. If it is surcharged with water, all the sunshine of our hot- 
test summers can not make it warm, and all the manure that can be put 
on it will not make the corn yield a maximum crop. In passing along 
the various railroads, we have often been saddened to see thousands of 
acres of land planted to corn, which, by a little underdraining, would 
have produced magnificent crops of this grandest of cereals, but which 
presented a miserable spectacle of yellow, sickly, stunted, half-starved 
plants, struggling for very life. We have ever been willing to apolo- 
gize for the shortcomings of American farmers. We know the difficulties 
under which many of them labor. We do believe them to be, as a whole, 
" intelligent and enterprizing." But these sickly corn-fields are well 
calculated to create a very different impression. We have frequently 
to repeat the German proverb — "To know is not to be able." These 
farmers know how to raise good corn, but they are not always able to 
put in practice improved methods of cultivation. Many, however, 
might do better than they do. The country is in an embarrassed con- 
dition. Willing hands can not find labor. Good crops alone can save 
us from still greater poverty and suffering. One good harvest would set 
the wheels of trade and manufacturing industry in motion, and usher 
in a gladsome period of national prosperity. But it is in vain to hope 
for good crops without good cultivation." 

Constant stirring of the soil decomposes its organic matter, and 



GILL'S EXPERIMENT IN CORN CULTURE. G57 

renders available the food of plants lying latent in it; it enables it to 
attract ammonia, and to condense moisture from the atmosphere, while 
it furnishes a loose and warm bed for the roots to grow in. 

Deep culture is also indispensable. There is scarcely a plant which 
does not thrive much better in a loose, deep soil, than in a shallow, com- 
pact one ; but in no case is this fact susceptible of more ready verifica- 
tion than in the corn plant. One instance only may be cited to illustrate 
the effects of deep culture. There is in the immediate vicinity of Colum- 
bus a tract of "Scioto bottom land" which has for upward of forty years 
been cultivated in corn annually. In 1851, Mr. John L. Gill, of Colum- 
bus, anxious to test the effect of deep culture on corn, plowed eleven 
acres and about three-fourths to a depth of about eight inches, with a 
double plow, and then followed with a subsoil plow, loosening but not 
turning up the soil, to a depth of eight inches more. This tract, as 
well as the neighboring one, had never been plowed to a depth exceed- 
ing six or seven inches. In 1851 the neighboring pieces were plowed 
the usual depth, and planting completed on the 7th of May; Mr. Gill 
completed the planting on the 10th. 

In the course of three weeks the corn in the neighboring tracts 
appeared as forward and thrifty as usual, while that of Mr. Gill ap- 
peared pale and rather, dwarfed — this, to say the least, was rather dis- 
couraging. But in the month of July, that in the neighboring fields 
appeared to have come to a " stand still," — the leaves curled and 
drooped, and gave unmistakable manifestations of sufferings from 
drought, while Mr. Gill's was growing vigorously, and indicated no lack 
of moisture. The result was that Mr. G. obtained 120 bushels per 
acre, while the adjoining fields yielded less than forty bushels per acre. 
This fact is well authenticated, and the field was witnessed in July and 
August by thousands of persons. 

While the stalks in Mr. G.'s tract presented a pale and sickly appear- 
ance, the roots were pushing downward in search of moisture and nour- 
ishment; finding abundance of this, a sufficient supply was stored for 
the growth of the plant to resist all effects of drought. That in the 
neighboring fields exhausted the supply at first, and when the drought 
set in it had no store of supply to fall back upon. 

Selection of seeds. — The ears which ripen the first should always be 
selected for seed, and not all the kernels on the ear should be planted. 
The largest and best developed grains only should be planted; those at 
the base and apex of the ear invariably tend to degenerate the variety. 
After they have been selected they should be placed in some dry, cool, 
airy place, but should not be exposed to the open air of severe mid- 
winter. 




658 THE CORN PLANT. 

Many farmers pursue altogether too hap-hazard a method of providing 
themselves with seed corn. The crop of corn in a field will be much 
less where seed comes up badly, and where there are hundreds of va- 
cancies in places where corn stalks ought to be. It is believed to be 
not an uncommon case that a farmer loses at least five bushels of corn 
to the acre on account of poor seed. The loss sustained through the 
entire West must therefore be immense. And yet with a little attention 
there is really no difficulty in providing good seed. In the mouth of 
September, when the husks on most of the ears of corn begin to whiten, 
showing a commencement of the ripening of the grain, go through the 
corn-field selecting good ears. In husking them, leave two or three 
husks, for the purpose of braiding several ears together. Suspend these 
over poles, affixed in some of the out-buildings, and let them remain 
till planting time in spring. This method of securing good seed corn 
has been known to me from boyhood. As a proof of the excellency 
of this plan, I have now on hand two or three communications giv- 
ing the practical experience of good farmers who have tried it. 

One correspondent writes from Yellow Springs, saying that he 
lately met with a Mr. James Justice, an old farmer from Indiana, 70 
years of age, Who stated he had uniformly supplied himself with seed 
corn in the manner above related for more than thirty years, and that 
he never failed in having good seed; that his corn plant's in spring, 
when first pushing out of the ground, exhibit a vigor of growth and a 
vitality of constitution that remain visible throughout the entire 
season. And the following on this same subject I publish in full. 

Saving Seed Com. — I gather my seed early in September, when 
about half the ears of the field intended for gathering seed from have 
their husks whitened with ripeness, showing ears that have matured. 
The secret of the whole matter may be understood at once ; be sure to 
have seed corn perfectly dry before freezing weather comes upon it. 
This method, be assured, if* carefully attended to, will save much trouble 
and perplexity in starting your corn crops. I leave enough husk on 
each ear to tie two and two together, and hang on poles in a dry airy 
place, two ears deep to each pole. 

Soaking corn in water has all the effect so far as hastening growth is 
concerned, that soaking in any of infinite solutions recommended would 
have; at -the same time it may be advisable to soak the corn in 
some mineral solution, and then roll it in plaster of Paris, lime, or even 
tar, to render it unpalatable or poisonous to cut-worms, grubs, etc. The 
kernels should be planted in " check-rows, ,! two and a half or three feet 
apart, and six to eight kernels in each hill; then, at the expiration of 
three or four weeks the hills should be thinned out — always removing 



HOW TO CULTIVATE CORN. 069 

the least vigorous plants, until three or four only are left in each hill. 
Bear in mind the necessity of closer planting- than is usual, to give 
you a full crop of corn. While five feet square will give about 1,700 
hills, four feet each way will 2,700, and three and a half feet each way, 
more than 3,700 hills. With manure enough and proper working, this 
number will grow as well without firing and burning as that first 
named. 

The after culture of corn is simple, but nevertheless indispensable. 
But you must not put off working it until July. You can not go with 
plow or cultivator into corn six to eight feet high — the roots branching 
through every inch of the soil, without doing it irreparable damage. 

The grand axioms in corn-raising are — good ground, well prepared, 
early and careful planting; early cultivation, and hoeing; destruction 
of all weeds, the summer through. If prompt and energetic action is 
important and necessary anywhere, it is most emphatically so in a corn- 
field. 

Corn, being the chief summer crop, all other work should be got off 
our hands, that this may be put into the ground as early as the season 
will permit, and in the best possible condition. It is certainly among 
the most important considerations to get the crop started early, and that 
it have a vigorous, rapid, early growth. If planted late, and it is tardy 
in coming on at first, the season must prove remarkably and unusually 
favorable to expect even a middling yield. True, cases may be cited 
where good crops were obtained from late planting and loose culture; 
but who is willing to take such cases as governing rules in his gen- 
eral practice ? 

One plowing is all the cultivation usually given to corn-ground before 
planting, the seed being planted directly on the furrows ; but it can not 
be disputed, that, excepting our rich, alluvial bottom lands, more work- 
ing of the soil for this crop would result in a much more rapid growth 
and early maturity; since the finer the tilth, the more readily do the 
organs of the plant find their appropriate food. One or two workings, 
with a two-horse cultivator, after plowing, would prove an amply pay- 
ing operation, I think, on all soils, except those above noted, which, 
having been formed by gentle, river deposits, are more thoroughly com- 
mingled and divided than can be done by my processes of culture. 

Those who plant on greensward will be likely to have trouble with 
the cut-worm. To get rid of these insects, there appears to be but one 
effectual means, and that is, killing them outright, by passing over the 
field very early in the morning, armed with sharp sticks, to oust them 
from their hi ling-places. It is worse than a waste of time to apply any 
nostrums, however strongly advised and recommended. Plowing 



660 THE CORN PLANT. 

greensward, in August, the year previous, will insure safety against the 
cut-worm. The experiment was carefully tried in the same field, and 
though one to three worms were found in the last hill on the newly 
plowed ground, not a single one was seen on that portion plowed the 
previous year. 

My opinion has been asked in regard to the expediency of cultivating 
Indian corn entirely by the hand hoe, which formerly was the only cul- 
ture it received — save an apology for plowing. Good crops have been 
obtained by this mode, on soils that remain sufficiently loose through 
the season. Whether it is the most profitable way even on that kind of 
soil, is a question. The argument in favor of it is, that the implements 
usually drawn by a horse, cut off and mutilate the roots of the corn. 
This is not necessarily so. It is very true that the cultivator or plow 
may mutilate a few roots, but they readily form new spongioles (see 
page 142), and are not. in consequence retarded in growth. By stir- 
ring the soil new surfaces and new particles of matter are presented 
to the root from which to elaborate nutriment. (See pages 420 to- 424). 
For the same reason, if a harrow is drawn across a wheat field in spring 
time, when the soil is not wet, although many plants are mutilated, yet 
the remainder are more thrifty, stool better, and the crop is invariably 
larger than if the harrow had been withheld. 

The principal cultivation of Indian corn should be while it is com- 
paratively small. At this stage the roots have not extended them- 
selves far, and implements may penetrate the ground as deeply as 
desired without doing the growing plants any harm. As the crop 
grows, the implements which run deeply should be kept farther down 
from the stalks, and the use of them finally discontinued altogether. 
If the space between the rows has been properly cultivated, weeds 
will not grow much after the corn is so large as to shade all the 
ground. The little horse plow must not be wholly laid aside to make 
way for the cultivator. For in many cases the plow is best. When the 
soil lies heavy the little plow leaves it lighter than a little harrow or 
cultivator. The plow should run as close as possible to the corn and 
turn the earth away from it. Next time the earth may be turned toward 
the eorn — and the third time hoeing the cultivator may be used, when 
the holder fears that the plow would cut his corn roots. The steel tooth 
cultivator is best, as the teeth may be kept bright and clean. 

But corn is cultivated to a great extent in the country, on soils 
which tend to more compactness than is favorable to the crop. Here 
some means must be devised to counteract this tendency. In many 
cases, especially if heavy rains are followed by dry weather, the fore 
part of the season, some implement must be used that will penetrate 



EXTENT OF CORN CULTURE IN OHIO. 



661 



nearly to the depth to which the ground was first plowed, in order to 
prevent baking, and to afford a deep, friable bed for the corn roots. To 
accomplish this object by hand hoeing would be almost an impossibility, 
to say nothing of the expense. 

On the whole, I think the great aim should be to substitute horse 
'and ox labor for manual labor, as far as possible, in the cultivation of 
Indian corn and other crops. The expensiveness of hand labor forms an 
obstacle to corn culture. By the use of proper tools and by proper skill, 
the crop might be made to do better than it now generally does, and 
with considerable saving of expense. We have repeatedly seen fields of 
corn well cultivated, and with scarcely a weed to be seen, that never 
had a hand hoe in them. It is true that the larger and stronger stalks 
of the corn grown at the South render it more easy to keep down the 
weeds without injury to the corn than it would be with our varieties; 
but even here the thing could be done so far as to greatly lessen the use 
of the hand hoe. 

It is not necessary — probably not advantageous — to deeply cultivate 
between the rows of corn on very light soils. It is on such that hand- 
hoeing may answer; but tools might be used with a horse that would 
merely scrape the surface, if that only was desired. The common plow 
is not the best thing to cultivate corn with. On light land it disturbs 
the soil too much — that is the small portion of it which is touched at 
all — it is left too much in ridges and hollows. Level cultivation, which 
is best on loose, dry soils, can not be had with it. On tenacious soils, 
the plow even presses the under portion more closely than it was before. 
Cultivators, grubbers, horse-hoes, etc., are preferable to the common 
plow in cultivatiirg growing crops. 

Statement of the number of acres planted in Corn in 1857 and 1858 
in Ohio, also the number of bushels gathered in each, of these years. 





1857. 


1858. 


COUNTIES. 


CORN. 


CORN. 




Acres. 


Bushels. 


Acres. 


Bushels. 


Allen 


33,896 
29.341 
18,856 
9,620 
23,164 
17,847 


1,073.950 
679,744 
696,467 
327.891 
854,324 
537,460 


30,507 
12,781 
17,495 
11,802 
19,214 
11,300 


825,137 
315,799 
545,970 




457,070 




418,899 
222,947 



662 



THE CORN PLANT. 



COUNTIES. 



Belmont . .. 

Brown 

Buth-r 

Carroll 

Champaign 
Clark ....".. 
Clermont... 

Clinton 

Columbiana 
Coshocton.. 
Crawford .. 
Cujahoga.. 

Darke 

Defiance 

Delaware.. 

Erie , 

Fairfield ... 
Fayette. ... 
Franklin ... 

Fulton 

Gallia 

Geauga 

Greene 

Guernsey... 
Hamilton.... 
Hancock .... 

Hardin 

Harrison .... 

Henry 

Highland.... 
Hocking. ... 
Holmes ...... 

Huron 

Jackson 

Jefferson 

Knox 

Lake 

Lawrence ... 

Licking 

Logan 

Lorain 

Lucas 

Madison 



1857. 



CORN. 



Acres. 

32,384 
39,138 
56,383 
11,954 
37,880 
30.914 
38^569 
38,980 
16,453 
38,906 
24,800 
10,512 
33,331 

9,458 
34,639 
20,439 
49,630 
48,611 
62,934 

9,308 
19,480 

6,687 
37,471 
22,651 
31.928 
22,290 
16,254 
17,461 

6,120 
53,554 
16,865 
18,214 
31,767 
19,000 
15,562 
33 640 

6,437 
17,393 
48,156 
29,223 
11,977 

6,131 
36,410 



Bushels. 



1858. 



CORN. 



1,330,403 

1,350,769 

2,696,597 

401,637 

1,475,670 

1.222,009 

1,425,540 

1,402,003 

503^856 

1,442,972 

861,039 

369,194 

1,174,368 

304,312 

1,445,316 

601,713 

1,858,862 

2,257.752 

2,665,661 

276,798 

645,468 

217,144 

1,592,590 

746,361 

1,172,831 

594,561 

512,158 

702,270 

178,573 

2,022,213 

560,828 

572,319 

897,100 

533,841 

583,940 

1,216,205 

238,348 

553,244 

1,944,390 

1,081.3(19 

410,705 

198,444 

1,541.601 



Acres. 



25,890 
35,350 

49,848 

9,980 
30,638 
23.670 
34,240 
38,484 
13,7.95 
33,913 
19,549 
10,149 
23,912 

0,182 
25,756 
15,844 
39,464 
43,564 
50,570 

6,614 
17,330 

6,082 
30,827 
17,427 
26,857 
17,514 
11,293 
14244 

<601 
48,998 
14,583 
16,385 
22,566 
15,975 
12,828 
30.290 

0,592 
16,342 
46,810 
24,568 

9.913 

4,780 
26.297 



Bushels. 



676,479 

1,001,180 

1,448,846 

241,366 

962,81)9 

764,756 

920,761 

1,041,164 

406,662 

1,013.446 

554,300 

361,453 

455,300 

153,295 

685,090 

438,290 

1,147,935 

1,232,669 

1,4C6,7 75 

141,822 

393,859 

229,348 

1,083,990 

379,410 

822.530 

442,428 

261,852 

372,096 

110,159 

1,561,199 

338,H12 

401,782 

547,251 

361,432 

292.259 

97(1.396 

252,990 

390,754 

1,476,061 

607,674 

285,463 

128,613 

704,946 



CORN CULTURE IN OHIO. 



663 



COUNTIES. 



Mahoning , 

Marion 

Medina 

Meigs 

Mercer , 

Miami 

Monroe 

Montgomery ., 

Morgan 

Morrow 

Muskingum ... 

Noble 

Ottawa 

Paulding 

Perry 

Pickaway 

Pike 

Portage 

Preble 

Putnam 

Richland 

Ross 

Sandusky 

Scioto 

Seneca 

Shelby 

Stark ... 

Summit 

Trumbull 

Tuscarawas .... 

Union 

Van Wert , 

Vinton , 

Warren 

Washington .... 

Wayne 

Williams 

Wood 

Wyandotte 



1857. 



CORN. 



Acres. 



12,265 
34,074 
14,929 
.15,285 
17,251 
42.117 
20,034 
37,306 
21,645 
23,531 
39,512 
22,612 
3,685 
3,883 
21,054 
72,188 
27,715 
11,371 
39,210 
17,089 
25.216 
74,114 
16,991 
24,767 
27,271 
21,680 
21,791 
11,142 
12,294 
25,649 
32,413 
9,434 
14,587 
43,206 
22,646 
24,685 
11,241 
14,462 
21,389 



Bushels. 



422,876 

1,3(15,109 
743,624 
547,689 
543,845 

1,631,301 
598,384 

1.569,125 
'842,857 
817,874 

1,469,595 
793,998 
120,459 
116,674 
674,266 

3,409,177 

1,050,976 
620.038 

1,420,901 
467,610 
746,842 

3,397,188 
403,991 
949,069 
747,423 
695,603 
751.120 
307,979 
439.247 
948,521 

1,203,610 
291,636 
450,898 

1,834,777 
719,561 
824,871 
345,440 
388,487 
733,530 



Total 2,254,424 I 82,555,186 



1858. 



CORN. 



Acres. 



10,477 
24,854 
11,978 
13,091 

9,294 
28,430 
16,600 
22,854 
18,176 
16,832 
32,641 
20,375 

3,274 

2,177 
18,957 
49,940 
21,701 

9,620 
31,615 
11,158 
21,098 
71.051 
13,036 
18,014 
21,847 
10,939 
27,477 
10,611 
10,169 
20,577 
21.451 

5,732 
11,350 
33,992 
20,596 
21,939 

6,528 
10,294 
16,886 



1,834,138 



Bushels. 

397,637 
626,270 
485,830 
329,582 
148,926 
752,016 
309,884 
655,299 
515,080 
448,897 

1,001,408 

558,788 

85,517 

44,770 

549,636 

1,392,296 
612,029 
413,669 
890,796 
209,041 
613,249 

2,011,998 
360,292 
530,125 
478,828 
248,838 
594,637 
420,039 
401.493 
506,091 
480,314 
82,003 
254,985 
989,687 
533,206 
730,098 
142,266 
210,076 
423,639 

50,863,582 



664 



THE CORN PLANT, 





No. of Acres. 


No. of Bushels. 


Corn crop 

a a 


of 1850 
1851 
1852 
1853 
1854 
1855 
1856 




1,537,947 
1/564,427 
1,730,188 
1,836,493 
1,972,337 
2,205,282 
2,084,893 


56,619,608 
61,171,282 


a 


a a 


a 


58,165,517 


a a 


a 


73,436.090 
52,1 71. 55 1 


(1 C( 


a 


a a 


a 


87 587 434 


a a 


a 


57,802.515 









The several varieties of corn cultivated in the State, may be classified 
into soft and hard, the latter including that with round and flinty grains, 
almost transparent, and very hard — rarely whitish or thickened on the 
outer extremity of the grain, and never dented. 

The soft corn is less hard than that which is classified as hard, 
although not always soft in the common meaning of the term. All the 
gourdseeds and dent varieties belong to this class, with grains more or 
less long, always whitish at the end, and more or less dented or pointed. 
Also corn with short, round grains, that readily break under the nail. 

Each of these classes may be subdivided according to color, into white, 
and yellow or colored. 

Experience establishes the fact, that the flour of the hard, or flinty 
corns is much less liable to become musty, or to "sour" than that of the 
soft, white, starchy varieties. 

There are two original varieties of the flint corn, viz.: the white and 
the yellow, which, by being crossed on other varieties, have produced an 
extensive family of hybrids, all of which partake, in a greater or less 
degree of their progenitors. The flint varieties are more hardy than the 
soft ones, yield less starch, but are much better adapted for family use, 
and are less liable to spoil in shipping, either in grain or ground, while 
they are at the same time less valuable for stock than the soft varieties. 

The following is a brief statement of the varieties cultivated in the 
State, viz.: 

Early White. — It matures, in Clark county, Ohio, if planted by the 
first of June — medium fodder, rather small cob of red and white color, 
grains dented, sound, and good weight. Each stalk bears one or two 
ears, and each ear twelve to sixteen rows. It is of medium size, white 
color, very early, and is a soft variety. 

Early Adams. — This corn is considered by some persons, very desirable, 
while by others it is regarded as unfit for table use, and not as useful foi 
the farm as the Early White. The grains are firm, sound, dented, flinty, 
and rather heavy. Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear from 



VARIETIES OF CORN IN OHIO. 665 

ten to fourteen rows. It is of rather small size, white color, rather 
early, and is a soft variety. 

Peabody's Prolific. — Some persons consider this corn a humbug. Dr, 
Warder, however, says of it, "This new variety from the South, closely 
resembles Early Adams, in many particulars. The ears are of a medium 
size, fodder large, under favorable circumstances prolific — promises 
well." Each stalk bears two or more ears, and each ear ten to fourteen 
rows. It is of medium size, clear white color, neither early nor late, and 
is a soft variety. 

White Gourdseed. — This old variety is a favorite kind for feeding in the 
ear, on account of its softness, although it is inconvenient for an ox to 
masticate between his grinders, in consequence of its large size. The 
grains are of medium weight, and very long; the cob is large, but not 
always sound, and each stalk bears one ear, with sixteen to twenty-four 
rows. It is short and thick, a dull white color, neither early nor late, 
and is a soft variety. 

Bayou. — This grows quite tall, and is very thrifty, and is much grown 
in the Miami bottom. The grains are large, dented and heavy ; the cob 
is large, but not always sound, and the husk coarse, and tightly inclos- 
ing the ear; the stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear twelve to four- 
teen rows. It is of large size, dull white color, late, and is a soft 
variety. 

Hackberry White. — This variety, like the Yellow Hack berry, appears 
to be a cross or hybrid, between the Gourdseed and Dent varieties. The 
cob is white and red, and scarcely medium size, and the grains are nar- 
row, pointed, medium size, good weight, and white. 

The stalk bears one compact and heavy ear, with twelve to sixteen 
rows, and in some instances as high as sixteen to twenty-two rows. 
This variety shells very readily, and one hundred and twenty-three 
bushels have been raised on an acre. It is neither early nor late, and is 
a soft variety. 

Common White. — This is much grown on hill farms, and is a great 
favorite for bread and stock. Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each 
ear ten to fourteen rows, and is medium size, dull white color, rather 
early, and a soft variety. 

Speckled White. — This is a curious mixture of red. yellow and white 
corn, of Gourdseed and Dent varieties. Some of the grains, and some 
of the ears are speckled, others are pure white, and still others are all 
red. The grains are long, sound, often pointed like hackberry, and are 
beautiful in the hand, and will make very good meal. The stalk bears 
one ear, with twelve to sixteen rows; is of medium size; white, red, or 
yellow color; and neither earlv nor late, and is a soft varietv. 

56 



666 THE CORN PLANT. 

Wyandotte. — This curiosity is unworthy of culture, on account of its 
lightness and lateness. It has many puckers, and all produce tassels 
and ears, and a single grain is sufficient for a bill. It has been grown 
in very few places only, and has not been favorably received in those 
places where it has been grown. Each stalk bears four to eight ears, 
and each ear from eight to ten rows. It is of medium size, and white, 
and is a soft variety. 

Flour, or New York Cheat. — This corn has credit of being a material 
of value in the preparation of the fancy brands of Genessee flour, for 
which the extreme whiteness of its meal well adapts it. For other pur- 
poses it is not desirable, as it is neither prolific, sound, nor heavy. Each 
stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear eight rows. It is medium size, 
neither early nor late, and is a soft variety. 

Tuscarora, or Early Suchett. — This is desirable only for an early crop 
of roasting ears, for the market, and most persons would prefer to wait 
a fortnight for the Sweet Corns. The grains are large and white, or 
dull white, and the cob is red and very small. Each stalk bears two 
ears, and each ear eight rows, and it is a soft variety. 

Baden. — This is undoubtedly a Southern variety. Various attempts 
have been made to grow it, in different portions of the State, but with- 
out success. It requires a very long and favorable season to mature it. 
Each stalk bears two or more ears, and each ear eight to ten rows. It 
is small sized, and of yellowish or dull white color, and is from Baden, 
in Germany. It is a soft variety. 

Neio England Sweet Sugar. — This is excellent for table use. If it 
is ground when very dry, it makes very good but not handsome bread, it 
being the sweetest of all the varieties of corn. Each stalk bears two 
ears, and each ear eight rows. It is small, translucent, and neither 
early nor late, and is a soft variety. 

Mammoth Sugar. — This is an improvement in the size of ears. Each 
stalk bears two ears, and each ear eight rows. It is of medium size, 
translucent, and neither early nor late, and is a soft variety. 

StowelVs Sorghum. — This is a delicious variety, and is deservedly a 
great favorite with all lovers of roasting ears. It has all the sweet- 
ness of the New England, with greater size of ear and depth of kernel, 
and a larger number of rows. Each stalk bears two ears, and each ear 
twelve to eighteen rows. It is medium size, translucent, and neither early 
nor late, and is a soft variety. 

Yellow, Blue and Red Sugars are all mere shoots from the New Eng- 
land, and are not desirable. Each stock bears two ears, and each ear 
eight rows. It is small in size, neither early nor late, and is a soft 
variety. 



VARIETIES OF OHIO CORN. 667 

Wigwam. — This is from the Suite of New .Jersey, and has many points 
to recommend it to public favor. It is vigorous and productive; fodder 
medium to large ; the ears are very long and regular ; the cob is red and 
white and small; the grains are dented, heavy and sound, but not so 
hard as to prevent thorough mastication by cattle, while the size of the 
ears and small cob enables them to bite off a portion at a time, and 
submit it to the influence of their grinders. This item may not be ap- 
preciated by those who feed meal and slop, but for the " million,'' it is no 
mean consideration. Horses select this corn from other varieties fed 
with it, and eat it first. Each stalk bears at least one ear with ten to 
sixteen rows. It is large in size, and of bright yellow color, neither 
early nor late, and is a soft variety. 

Dent. — This a favorite variety, possessing many good qualities, being 
a medium between the Gourd-seed and Flint varieties. There are several 
varieties of the Dent tribe, as the Early, the White and the Yellow. 
The Early Dent is an eight-rowed, white variety, each stalk bears two 
ears, and it ripens in about one hundred days. The White Dent has 
from ten to fourteen rows on each ear, some of the stalks bear two ears, 
others one only, and it ripens at least ten days later than the Early 
variety. The Yellow variety has all the characteristics of the White, 
with the exception of color, it being a bright yellow, but requires ten 
days longer to mature fully. The Dent family of corn is perhaps more 
extensively cultivated in Ohio than any other. It yields from sixty to 
seventy-five bushels per acre. It is medium to large size, and is a soft 
variety. 

Big Yellow. — Cob is rather large, but the grains are not as large as 
some other sorts. Each stalk bears one ear with twelve to sixteen rows. 
It is large, dull yellow color, neither early nor late, and is a soft variety. 
Maryland Gillou. — Was brought from Maryland many years ago. A 
specimen of it was sent from Ohio to the "World's Fait " in England, 
where it took the premium over all others exhibited. This variety is 
nearly lost by its lateness in the bad seasons. Each stalk bears one 
ear with twelve to sixteen rows. It is very large, deep yellow, and late, 
and is a soft variety. 

Ilackberry. — This variety is grown to a considerable extent in central 
Ohio. It is a hybrid or cross between the Gourd-seed and Dent varieties, 
and is very popular. Each stalk bears one ear with twelve to sixteen 
rows. The grains are long, pointed, generally sound, and are of a dull 
yellow color, though sometimes speckled grains may be seen. It matures 
in ordinary seasons, about the first of September, and is of medium size, 
rough to handle, and is a soft variety. 

Bloody Butcher. — This is a, hybrid between the Hackberry, Dent and 



668 THE CORN PLANT. 

Red, and is considerably grown in the bottom.:!. It matures about the 
first of October in the northern portion of the State, and from ten days 
to two weeks earlier in the southern. Each stalk bears one ear with 
twelve to sixteen rows, and is of medium to large size, and dull yellow 
red and striped colors, and is a soft variety. 

Pymm. — This variety is from Pennsylvania, and is a very handsome, 
heavy, large Dent corn. Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear 
twelve to sixteen rows. It is of large size, yellow color, and is neither 
early nor late, and is a soft variety. 

Lee County, Iowa. — This is a variety distributed by the Patent Office, 
is one of the largest Early varieties, and is valued for replanting or late 
planting. The grains are sound, firm, large, and of bright yellow color. 
Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear twelve to fourteen rows. 
It is a soft variety. 

Bonem or Bonham. This variety is much grown in the Miami bot- 
toms, where it originated, and is productive, sound, and of good weight. 
Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear twelve to sixteen rows. 
It is of medium size, chocolate or dull red color, neither early nor late, 
and is a soft variety. 

Master. — Is from Tennessee, and is so distinct as to maintain its char- 
acter when mixed with other sorts, upon which it leaves its impress, and 
hence the name it bears. The grains are rather deep, dented, sound, 
though not heavy. Each stalk produces one or two ears, and each 
ear ten to twelve rows. It is from medium to large size, dull red color, 
early, and is a soft variety. 

Clinton. — This variety is from J. S. Lecoming. Wilmington, Clinton 
county, Ohio, and promises well. Each stalk bears one or two ears with 
twelve to fourteen rows. It is from medium to large size, dark yellow 
color, early, and is a soft varietj\ 

Gourd-seed or Horse-tooth. — This variety is-exteusively cultivated in 
the southern portion of the State. It is a soft variety, ear short, and 
densely packed with eighteen rows of large white grains, having the 
summit indented, possibly from the drying of the starch. The indenta- 
tions make it rough corn to handle. 

Bastard Gourd-seed. — Is grown to a considerable extent in central and 
eastern Ohio. It is productive, not so hard as the flint, nor so rough to 
handle as the Gourd-seed, and matures rather earlier than the latter. It 
has yellow, good-sized grains, sixteen rows to the ear, although some- 
times ears are found containing eighteen or twenty rows. It is a soft 
variety. 

Sheep-tooth or Small Gourd-seed. — It is a variety of the Hackberry, 
and is grown in the northern part of the State. Each stalk produces 



VARIETIES OF OHIO CORN. 069 

from one to four cars, each with twelve rows of small and dark yellow 
grains. It ripens from the middle to the lust of October, and is a soft 
variety. 

Yellow Gourd-seed. — This is a sixteen rowed variety of yellow corn — 
in other respects it much resembles the White Gourdseed or Horsetooth, 
and is a soft variety. 

Large White was originally from Tennessee. Each stalk generally 
produces two ears with twenty rows of white, large-sized grains on each 
ear. It ripens early. 

Ohio. — The stalk not unfrequently bears two ears. It is a yellow, 
twelve-rowed variety, and ripens about the first of October, in the north- 
ern part of the State, where it is cultivated to some extent. 

Pennsylvania. — This is a twenty-rowed, reddish variety of corn, in- 
troduced several years ago in the northern part of the State, from Ches- 
ter co., Pa., but it meets with no favor from the fact that it ripens very 
late, although it has many desirable qualities. 

Tree Corn. — Several attempts have been made to introduce this 
variety, but the great length of time required to mature it has been 
the obstacle to overcome. It is a yellow variety, each ear having from 
sixteen to twenty-six rows, and each stalk generally bearing two ears. 

While Flint. — This is an excellent, sound and productive variety. 
Each stalk bears one or two ears, and each ear eight to ten rows. It is 
large and pure white color, and, under ordinary circumstances, matures 
during the month of September. This variety was originally from 
Maryland, weighs sixty pounds per bushel, and is very hard to grind. 

Small White Flint. — Fodder small, ears low, husk loose, retaining 
water and spoiling the grain and cob. It is used for hominy. Each 
stalk bears two ears, and each ear eight rows. It is medium size, creamy 
white color, and early. 

Early White Fli?it has the same characteristics as the Small White 
Flint, color excepted, it being pure white. It is used for hominy, roast- 
ing-ears, and bread. Fodder tall. 

Arkansas Hominy. — This variety was brought from the South ; pro- 
duces very large fodder, but is too late in ripening to be useful. Each 
stalk bears two ears, and each ear eight rows. It is medium size, dull 
white color and hard. 

Pink Flint. — Perhaps this is not a distinct varietj 7 . It may be Early 
Adams changed. Each stalk bears two ears, and each ear ten rows. It 
is of small size, pink color and early. 

Mexican Flint. — This beautiful corn was received from the Patent 
Office, and is productive, sound, and heavy. The very large, firm, white 
grains characterize it especially for the manufacture of hominy. Each 



670 THE CORN PLANT. 

stalk bears two ears, and each ear eight to twelve rows. It is large, 
white, and early. 

White Pop Com. — This is the prettiest variety of pop corn. There 
is a great number of very compact small-eared, ten-rowed varieties of 
corn which are cultivated iu gardens, the stalk yielding from two to 
six ears, and are good for the purpose of ;< popping." — The smallest are 
preferred. 

Rice Corn is a pearly white, small, but very long grained, twelve- 
rowed garden corn, each stalk bearing from two to three ears. 

Yellow Flint. — This corn is too hard for hogs or cattle. It is heavy, 
sound, makes good bread, and is valuable for replanting. Each stalk 
bears two ears, and each ear eight rows. It is large, bright yellow color, 
and early. 

Canada. — This corn has the same characteristics as the Yellow Flint, 
except that it is small and of a clear pale yellow color. 

Button is not valuable as a field crop, where Dent corn will ripen. It 
is small, bright yellow, two ears to the stalk, and eight rows to the ear, 
and eai'ly. 

Golden Sioux is one of the original Indian corns. It. is quite small, 
of clear yellow color, very early, two ears to the stalk, and eight rows 
to the ear. 

King Philip was introduced several years since from the Eastern 
States, but is not held in high estimation except in a few isolated 
localities. A very intelligent farmer from Guernsey Co., writes: — ''The 
King Philip is the king of humbugs ; it is so eager for maturity that no 
matter when planted, nor in what kind of soil, it begins to tassel when 
knee high regardless of the season, and to die as soon as tasseled, making 
little grain and less fodder. It is represented to yield one hundred 
bushels per acre — it would still be a great exaggeration, giving the King 
the benefit of his roots, stalk, h-usks, blades, and crown, in the meas- 
ure." It is most generally used for replanting where later varieties 
have suffered from frost or late spring. 

The ear contains eight rows, but has been improved to twelve rows ; 
the grain is of moderate size and deep orange color; ears long, slender, 
with little variation in thickness from top to base ; and two ears usually 
grow to the stalk. 

Omaha. — This variety ripens far north in September. Its beautiful 
large blue grains yield a very white meal. It is very early, of deep blue 
color; two ears to the stalk, and eight rows to the ear. 

Purple Wyandotte is heavy, very hard, and very prolific. It is of 
medium size; purple color; and each stalk bears five ears, and each ear 
eight rows. 



OREGON CORN. 



671 



Red Pop Corn is very prolific, 
very small, very red, and is early. 
Each stalk bears five to nine ears, 
and each ear eight to ten rows. 

Yellow Pop Corn is small, of 
bright yellow color, and neither 
early nor late. Each stalk bears 
from four to six ears, and each ear 
ten to twelve rows. 

Mixed Pop Corn. — Thirty-two 
ears were produced from one grain 
of this variety ; every joint throw- 
ing an ear or a branch of ear3. It 
is very small; blue, yellow, and. 
white ; six to twelve ears grow 
upon the stalk, and ten to twelve 
rows upon the ear. 

New York is grown to a consider- 
able extent in the northern portion 
of the State. Each stalk bears 
two to four ears, and each ear eight 
rows. Under ordinary circum- 
stances, it ripens about the middle 
of August. There are several vari- 
eties, differing in color only from 
a pure white to yellow, and even 
dark oi'ange, like the King Philip. 
Wabash was introduced as much 
as eighteen years ago into south- 
eastern Ohio. It is a white variety ; 
each ear having fourteen to twenty- 
four rows of large grains; it has 
also a large cob, but the shelled 
corn weighs from fifty-eight to 
sixty pounds per bushel, and makes 
an excellent quality of bread. It 
ripens during the month of Sep- 
tember. 

Lady Washington has ten rows of 
medium sized grains, of a whitish 
shaded with purple color. It ripens 
early, and promises to be quite an 
acquisition. 




672 THE CORN PLANT. 

Yankee. — There is an eighteen-rowed, yellow variety of this name, 
cultivated in Summit county, Ohio; each stalk bearing four ears. "It 
matures early, and is pretty well liked as an upland corn; it has small 
ears, and the grains are very hard." 

Oregon, California, or Wild Corn. Samples of this variety have 
been introduced from Oregon, California, Mexico, and South America. 
The cob (a) (see Plate on preceding page) does not exceed half an 
inch in diameter; is very pithy; the grains are each enveloped in a 
separate husk (b b), and attached to the cob. The grain (c) is very 
flinty, dented, rather ovate, sides convex, and pointed at its place of 
insertion in the cob. It is grown as a curiosity only. 

Virginia. — This is a very late light-yellow variety ; has from twelve 
to sixteen rows; is considerably cultivated in central and eastern Ohio. 

Bed Cob is a twelve-rowed yellow corn; ripens during the first week 
in September; the grains are medium sized, and the cob, as the name 
indicates, is red. 

Kentucky is a twelve-rowed white corn; matures during the latter 
part of September, and is highly spoken of. It weighs eight to ten 
pounds heavier than yellow corn generally ; of course, it yields better 
and is said to stand drought better than the yellow. 

Illinois Brown is a twelve-rowed brown corn ; ripens about the middle 
of September; the grains are medium sized, of a dark brownish color, 
each stalk bearing from one to three good sized ears. It was formerly 
in better repute than at present, from the fact that it rapidly deteriorates. 

Trumbo is a variety cultivated to some extent in south-eastern Ohio. 
It is a fourteen-rowed yellow variety ; has generally one to two long 
and sound ears to the stalk. It matures early, and stands in good 
repute. 

White Cap is a sixteen-rowed yellow variety; matures about two 
weeks later than the Dent. The stalks are two to three feet higher than 
the Dent, and yield from sixty to eighty bushels per acre. 

Cregar. — This is a brown hybrid variety, possibly between the Illinois 
Brown and King Philip. There are from sixteen to twenty rows on each 
ear, and sometimes two ears to the stalk; it deteriorates by culture, and 
does not ripen until the middle of October or first of November, — entirely 
too late for the climate of Ohio. 

Tuscaraicas is a ten-rowed white corn, ripening about the first of 
October; it is cultivated to a considerable extent in nouth-eastern Ohio. 

Calico is a fourteen-rowed variety; the grains are yellow, with red 
Etripes; and ripens about the first of October. 

Hominy is an eight-rowed white variety; large grain; one ear to the 
stalk ; ripens in October in northern Ohio; and is much used for hominy. 



CORN' CHOP OF 18-").S IN OHIO. 



G— «l 



Scott's Striped Corn. — This variety was produced by Mr. S. H. Scott, 
of Morgan county, by crossing a variety of the Yellow Dent having 
twenty rows with a yellow red eight-rowed corn. Scott" s Corn is red" 
dish, with a yellow stripe; sixteen to eighteen rows to the ear, and two 
ears to the stalk; it ripens about the 25th of August. Mr. S. says : 
" I found this hybrid to be of better quality than either of the originals — 
is better adapted to the climate — yields eighty to ninety bushels per acre 
and there are nine pounds of cob to every fifty-six pounds of corn." 

The following is a condensed statement of the replies from County 
Agricultural Societies to questions propounded on the annual circular 
by the Corresponding Secretary of the Ohio State Board of Agriculture : 

CORN. 



COUNTIES. 



Adams 

Ashland... 
Ashtabula. 



Athens... 
Belmont. 



Brown 
Butler 



Carrol 

Champaign. 



Crawford , 
Cuyahoga, 



Darke 

Defiance .. 
Delaware 



1. How late was the 
latest com planted in 
your county ? 2. Did 
it mature ? 



What were the conse 
quences to cattle and 
hogs, fed on the un- 
ripe corn of last year? 



20 June. 

1 5 to 20 June. 



3d July. Matured 
well on bottom 
lands. 

9th of June. 



June. 2. Yes. 

Some varieties of 
flint were plant- 
ed latter part of 
June. 

12th to 15th June. 

1st of July. 

6th July. 2. Yes. 
25th of June. 

22d of June. 

1 to 10 July. 2. Yes. 

7th of July. 2. Yes 



Bad, especially for 
horses. 



Cattle some, 
none. 



Hogs 



No bad consequen- 
ces. Did not fat- 
ten stock well. 

Bad. 

None. 



Would not fatten. 



Looseness 
bowels. 
None. 
None. 
None. 



of the 



What varieties 
ceeded best ? 



White yellow flint. 

Hackberry and 
Gourd seed. 

Red-cob, gourd 
seed, King Phil- 
lip, on good soil, 
yields most. 

Yellow gourd seed. 



Yellow gourd seed 
best, white flint 
next. 

Red Cob Yellow 



Yellow gourd seed. 
Gourd seed and 
flint. 



'), 



Gourd seed. 

Small yellow. 

Yellow flint. 

Common yellow 
Dent, York State 
and Michigan. 



674 



THE CORN PLANT. 



COUNTIES. 


1. How late was the 
latest corn planted 
in your county? 2. 
Did it mature ? 


What were the conse- 
quences to cattle and 
hogs, fed on the un- 
ripe corn of last year? 


What varieties suc- 
ceeded best ? 




10th June. 2. Yes. 
7th of July. 

24th of June. 

1st July. 2. Did 
not all mature. 


None. 

Did not fatten well . 

Stock killed by un- 
ripe corn. 
No. 


Yellow flint. 

Fair crop in some 


Gallia 


places, damaged 
by heavy rains 
in others. 


Hamilton 


Gourd seed, hack- 
berry, yellow 
flint 

King Philip tried 
with success. 

Yellow and white 
gourd seed. 

Yellow. 

Common yellow 

and white. 
Small yellow. 

Hackberry. 

Small white flint 
and large yellow. 
(See original.) 




1st July. 2. Mat- 
ured well. 

25th June. 2. Most 
matured. 

22d of June. 

25th June. 2. Mat- 
ured. 

25th June. 2. Mat- 
ured. 

5th July. 2. Mat- 
ured. 

4th July. 2. Not 

all. 
2d July. 2. Yes. 
25th June. 2. Yes. 

25 May. 2. Yes. 
10 July. 2. Yes. 

27 June. 2. Yes. 

1 July. 2. No. 

4 July. 2. Not all. 
22 Jane. 2. Yes. 

10 June. 2. Yes. 
15 July. 2. Yes 7-9 
29 June. Yes, § . 

15 June. 2. Yes. 
25 June. 2. Yes. 


Slightly injurious 

to stock. 
Did not fatten well. 

No bad effect. 

Did not fatten well. 

No bad conse- 
quences. 

Fattened hogs 
slowly. 

Did not fatten well. 

None. 
None. 

Fattened slowly. 

They kept fat. 

But few cases of se- 
rious consequence 
Did not fatten well. 


Knox 


Lake 


Red cob gourd seed. 
Large yellow and 

white. 
Yellow gourd seed. 
Alabama White, 




Lorain 




Hackberry small 
yellow gourd. 
Yellow Dent and 


Marion 


King Philip. 
Every kind known 
in Scioto Valley. 




Gourd seed and 


Meigs 


Flint. 
Yellow hackberry. 


Mercer 


Fattened slowly. 


Miami 


Yellow brown and 


Monroe 




striped. 


Montgomery... 


Took more to fatten 


Common yellow. 



CORN CROP 6v 1-858 IN OHIO. 



675 



COUNTIES. 



Morgan 

Morrow 

Muskingum 

Ottowa 

Portage 

Preble 

Putnam 

Richland 

Ross..... 

Sandusky ... 

Scioto 

Seneca 

Shelby , 

Stark 

Summit , 

Tuscarawas , 

Union 

Van Wert... 

Warren 

Wayne 



1. How late was thelWhat were the conse- 



latest corn planted 
in your county ? 2. 
Did it mature ? 



Williams 

Wood 

Wyandot 



10 July. 2. Yes. 

25 June. 2. Yes. 
16 June. 2. Yes. 
Uuly. 2 Nearly all 
25 June. 2. Yes. 

15 June. 2. Yes. 
8 July. 2. Not all. 
10 July. 2. No. 

4 July. Did not 
mature. 1st of 
July, Yes. 

20 June. 2. Yes. 



4 July. 2. Yes. 

25 June, ^matured 
1 June. 2. Yes. 
6 June. 2. Yes. 

16 June. Matured. 
July 5. Did not 
mature. 

20 June. 2. Ma- 
tured well. 

3 July. 2. No. 

28 June. 2. Yes. 

10 June. 2. Yes. 
10 June and later. 
2. Yes. 



5 July. 2. Yes. 



20 June. 2. Not all 
4 Julv. 2. Yes. 



q nonces to cattle and 
lic^s, fed on the un 
ripe corn of last year? 



Almost worthies 

for stock. 
Slow growth. 



Done very well. 
« u a 

Good for cattle, not 
for hogs. 



We have heard of 
some Stock being 
killed. 

Not injurious,more 
to fatten. 

More to fatten. 

Not injurious. 

Did not thrive well 



Not nutritious. 



None injured by it. 
Fattened hogs well. 



No deleterious ef- 
fects. 



What varieties 
ceeded best? 



Common yellow. 



Red Cob, gourd 
seed, King Philip 



Yellow Ripley and 
Kentucky White. 

Gourd seed. 



Small yellow. 



Gourd seed and 

King Philip. 
Yellow flint. 



Robinson and 
Quand's yellow. 

Common yellow 
and white. 

Yellow gourd seed 
and King Philip. 



Large quantity of 
seed brought 
from Pennsyl- 
vania and Illi- 
nois; the Penn. 
the best, 

Hackberry, Yello w 
Dent, and King 
Philip. 

Yellow gourd seed 

Common yellow. 




P L A T E I 



PLATE I. — PAGE 92. 

Explanation. — A JEgilops ovata, b, producing jE. triti- 
coides c ; a, the original ear from which they proceeded. B, 
spikelet of JE ovata with each glume bearing four awns. D, 
spikelet of JE* triticoides forcibly opened ; its two glumes each 
with 2 unequal awns, a pair of sessile florets and a stalked 
floret in the middle. E, floret of JE triticoides forced open 
with two valves or paleae, of which one has an awn and a frag- 
ment. F, floret of JE ovata forced open, with two valves or 
paleae, one of which has two awns. 




PLATE II. 



PLATE II. — PAGE 99. 

A. Ear of 1840, natural size ; a, floret and kernel magnified. 

B. Ear of 1839, natural size. 

C. Ear of 1841, natural size ; b, floret and kernel magnified. 




PLATE T T 1 



PLATE III. 



A. Ear of 1842, natural size ; a, spikelet somewhat c a- 



larged. 



B. Ear of 1844, natural size ; b, spikelet enlarged. 

C. A floret with fruit also magnified. 



PLATE IV. 




Australian Wheat, - 


- Page 525 


Garden Wheat, - 


" 528 


Kentucky Red, - - - - 


" 526 


White Blue-stem, - - - - 


" 538 


Soule's, - 


" 548 




PLATE V. 



PLATE V. 

Belgian. — The description of this variety was inadvert- 
ently omitted in the text. It is a red bearded winter wheat 
of the Mediterranean family, and very much resembles the 
Golden Chaff (page 515). The straw and head are light yellow 
when ripe ; the grain a fair amber color, and much plumper 
than the Mediterranean. There are from eis;ht to twelve 
breasts on each side, each breast containing four grains; the 
beards are very long, and when ripe spread very much. It 
ripens with the Mediterranean, but should be cut before fully 
ripe, as it sheds its grains more readily than any variety I 
have ever seen. It is a vigorous grower, resists midge and 
rust, and yields better than the Mediterranean. It is grown 
in Clermont county. 

Red Blue Stem, Page 525 

Dayton or Whig, .... "527 

g^i* The cut represents both a side and a lateral view of 
the head. 

Pennsylvania White, - - - Page 550 




PLATE VI. 



PLATE VI. 

Mediterranean, Page 516 

Alabama, " 537 

Zimmerman, _--__" 532 
Red Chaff Mediterranean, - - " 518 

Golden Chaff, "515 




PLATE VII. 



PLATE VII. 

Genessee Flint, Page 543 

Rock, "523 

Quaker, "520 

Purkey, "546 

58 




PLATE VIII. 



PLATE VIII. 



Lambert, 

Early Ripe, 

Canada Flint, 

Club, 

Old Red Chaff, 



Page 


545 


u 


542 


a 


540 


a 


540 


a 


518 



INDEX. 



Page. 

AitAkrLfc wind in Ohi*?.. .«.. . , 309 

Anther <ul wheat ^ili.). ...... . 27 

iEgilops, varieties oi..,, .............. 92 

" description o*. ,.,..,.-.--. 96 

" Fabre's experiment with........... 98 

" produces wheat 101 

Ashes of plants, analysis of.- 237 

Ammonia, properties of. 170 

" contained in soil +, 171 

Apocrenic acid, composition of. ,, 175 

Ammonia, use of in plants 202 

" necessity of 203 

'* and carbonic acid 205 

Alumina, composition of. 155 

" fruit-forming substanc* 219 

Barley, history of. , 49 

Black Sea wheat, analyses of. 113-115 

Barley, experiments with 225 

11 experiments with 234 

Boussingault's experiments 238 

Buckwheat, experiments with 235 

Classification in animal kingdom 18 

" in vegetable kingdom 18 

" in mineral kingdom 1 19 

Cattle and horses, no diverse origin of. 24 

Chaff, analysis of. 116 

Carbon, properties of 164 

Carbonic acid, effect of in soil 192 

Carbon obtained from the soil 193 

" in plants, Henfrey's theory of. 194 

" " Liebig's theory of 193-5 

Carbonic acid and ammonia 205 

" " not derived from the air 208 

Caird's statement of Illinois soils 302 

Cereals and grasses, history of 36 

" " geographical distribution of 39 

" what ones most in use 41 



694 INDEX. 

Page. 

Cereals, varieties of 42 

Chess, is it derived from wheat 69 

Cellulose 125 

Cell production 137 

Crenic acid, composition of. 175 

Cells, how they multiply 1S8 

Climate, changes produced by 75 

" influences of 76 

Corn, history of. 53,641 

Crops, philosophy of rotations in 147 

Clay, properties of. 154 

Chlorine, properties of. 169 

Clay absorbs ammonia 198 

Chlorine of doubtful utility 214 

Clover, experiments with 236 

Crops, necessity of rotation in 357 

" how to rotate remuneratively 363 

Clod-crusher 417 

Coolidge, J., letter from 484 

Corn, native country of. 641 

" in Eastern countries 642 

" in Egyptian tombs 643 

" different names of. 644 

" Italian 645 

" Humboldt's opinion of origin of. 646 

" Persian history of origin of 647 

" Summary of historical evidence 648 

" Botanical description of. 649 

" plate illustrating flower of. 650 

" description of plate 651 

" analyses of plaut 652 

*• analyses of component parts 653 

" matter removed from an acre , 654 

" culture of. ., 655 

" soil for 656 

M Gill's experiment in deep culture 657 

14 selecting and sowing corn seed 658 

" how to cultivate 659 

M cultivating 660 

•• in Ohio, statement of 661 

11 varieties of 664 

" Oregon, Fig. of. 671 

" crop of 1858 in Ohio 673 

" crop of 1858, effects on stock 673 

Drainage, effects of 403 

Drainage 449 

" how it operates 450 

" causes independence of w r eather 451 

" improves the crops •. 452 

" H. F. French's statement of 452 to 457 inclusive 



INDEX. 695 

Page. 

Drainage, resists drought 454 

" prevents drought 455 

" sundry statements on 456 

" effects of on wheat crop 457 

Dew, how caused 459 

Diastase 134 

Drilling 459 

" saves labor 460 

" saves seed 4G0 

" produces a larger yield 461 

" promotes tillering 462 

" summary of advantages of. 463 

*' cost of. 464 

Dillon, Isaac, letter from 482 

Diseases of the wheat plant 557 

" jaundice 559 

** blight or withering 559 

** lodging 560 

M sprouting in the shock 561 

" mildews 567 

" mildews, wheat 572 

" mildews, uredo rubigo 573 

" mildews, uredo caries 575 

" how to prevent 578 

" uredo foetida 579 

" " " engravings of. 580 

" " rubigo vera 581 

** " segetum 584 

«* M " how to prevent 587 

" cladesporium herbarium 589 

" caused by insects (see Insects) 592 

Drop of water on first leaf of oat plant 223 

Endosmosis defined 182 

Exosmosis defined 182 

Endosmotic theory untenable 185 

Embryo 266 

Fabee Espeit's experiment of producing wheat from aegilopa 98 

Farm-yard manure necessary 376 

" « " value of 378-379 

" " " draining* of. 426,429 

" " " ammonia in 427 

o « M analysis of 428 

" M " drainings, composition of. 430 

" " '-' mineral and organic substances in 431 

• " " quality of substances in 432 

" " " absorbed by soils 433 

" " " rotten draining of. 436 

" M " analysis of filtration from 441 

*• " " analysis, chemical 442 



696 INDEX. 

Page. 

Farm-yard manure before and after nitration 444 

44 " " for wheat 447 

41 44 4f composted 448 

Flesh of elephants in river Lena 166 

44 of animals derived from plants 377 

Flour, new method of preserving 166 

44 price from 1800 to 1855 328 

44 exported 329 

Forest trees are exponents of the quality of soil 337 

Fallows not essential 367 

Frost, effects of on plants 465 

Frozen plants, how to thaw 473 

Frost, how does it act on plants? 474 

Geasses, primitive 20 

44 history of. 36 

44 Tropical 37 

44 in temperate zones 38 

44 geographical distribution of , 39 

44 important 43 

Granite composition 154 

Grasses freeze sooner than other plants 472 

German legend 11 

Germination 126 

44 conditions necessary 123 

44 time of in wheat 130 

44 effectsof colored lights on 131 

44 Osborne's experiments in 139 

Geic acid, analysis of 175 

Gregory, D., letter from 486 

Gilbert & Lawes, experiments of. 239 

" " history of gluten 240 

" " experiments with varieties of wheat 241 

44 " determination of nitrogen 242 

m '• method of experiments 243 

*« " plan of investigation 244 

«« " summary of experiments 245 

«« " effect of season on crop 246 

« 44 early wheat has less mineral matter 248 

" 44 influence of manures 249 

** * 4 table of experiments 250 

" " method of determining nitrogen 251 

" " manures affect quantity more than quality 252 

« " table of quantity, quality, etc 253 

" 4< mineral manures increase nitrogen 254 

*« " amount of matter depends on maturity 255 

" " method of analysis , 256 

«' " probable errors as to bases 257 

" 4C table of wheat ash, analyses (1844) 258 

« " table of wheat ash, analyses (1845) 259 

» 44 table of wheat ash, analyses (1846) 260 



INDEX. 697 

Page. 

Gilbert & Lawes, phosphates essential to wheat 261 

» " maturity depends on season 262 

«« " tabular statement of analyses 263 

" «« mean results 264 

" M conclusion of experiments 265 

Glume of wheat illustrated 27 

Gluten, properties of. 124 

" composition of. 199, 202 

' in wheat 199 

Gum, composition of. 202 

Gluten essential in articles of food 206 

" history of discovery 240 

Hendeick's, G. D., letter from on rust 590 

Hopetown wheat, analysis of 120 

Hornblende, composition and properties of. 158 

Humus, properties of. 172 

Humic acid, properties of 173 

" " composition of. 175 

Hnmin, " " 175 

Hybrids in the animal kingdom 25 

it i« « vegetable " 26 

Hybridization, how to perform 30 

Hybrids, natural in plants 33 

" of wheat 34 

Hybridization, Raynbird's experiments 35 

" effects of. 81 

•* Maund's and Raynbird's experiments 82 

" importance of in wheat 85 

Hydrogen, properties of. 169 

imsECT diseases of wheat 592 

•' agrypnus murinus 592 

" agriotes lineatus 593 

" « ob8curus 593 

" u sputator 593 

" anguillula tritici 632 

*■ anisoplia agricola 594 

" aphis granaria 595 

" «« zea 596 

'• athous longicollis 596 

" " ruficaudis 597 

" bembidium 597 

" cephus pygmasus 59S 

" cecidomyia tritici (midge) 599 

" M «« fig. of. 600 

«• M " parasites of 602 

" ■ " how to prevent 603 

" " " history of. 605 

" " «• fig. of the male 606 

*' cecidomyia destructor (Hessian fly) 608 

% u " fig. of. 610 

59 



698 index. 

Page. 

Insect, cecidomyia destructor, how to prevent 012 

" calandra granaria (weevil) 614 

" " oryzce 615 

" chlorops 616 

" " fig. of. 617-18 

" ccelinus niger 618 

" cucujus festaceus 619 

" gortyna zooe 635 

" lepidotus 636 

" micropus cucoptens (chinch hug) 619 

" " " fig. of. 620 

" meraporous graminicola 616 

11 ruiris erraticus 621 

" new insect « 636 

" noctua 622 

" " agrotis lineolati C22 

" oscinis 622 

u pachymerus calcitrator 624 

" polydesmus complanatus 624 

" platygaster tipula 625 

" " punctiger 607 

" pteromalus nicans 625 

" staphylinus 626 

" tenebrio molitor 626 

" tinea granella 627 

" trogosita mauritanica 628 

" thrips ceralium 628 

" wire worms 629 

" zahrus gibbus 631 

Introduction 9 

Indian legend of grain eaters 10 

Isomeric substances 138 

Iron, properties of 156 

Inorganic artificial soils 210 

" " Salm Horstmarr's experiments in 210 

" substances, what ones are essential 217 

Iron, effects of in excess 218 

" sodium and manganese necessary 229 

Lawson, Charles, letter of 1 132 

Lime, composition and properties of 158 

" sulphite of. 159 

" sulphate of 159 

" phosphate of. 159 

Lignin, composition of 202 

Lois Weedon system 380 

" " " cost of 386 

" '« " hand labor indispensable 387 

Magnesium, properties and description of. 160 

Maple, analysis of ashes of. 178 

Manganese increases assimilation • 213 



INDEX. 699 

Page. 

Manganese not necessary to farm fruit 218 

Mapes, Prof, on deep plowing 402 

Manuring 420 

" drainings of dung-heaps 426 

" " ammonia in 427 

" " analysis of..... 428 

" wheat crop 446 

Maize, native country of. 641 

" in eastern countries 042 

" " Egyptian tombs 643 

" various names of. 644 

Mica, composition and properties of 157 

Mineral manures not always fertilizers 333 

Mildew 567, 570 

Moisture in plants : 238 

Mules or mongrels 25 

Nitrogen, properties of. c 168 

" necessity in nutrition 200 

" what function itperforms ? 201 

" in the wheat plant 207 

" in the wheat roots 207 

*' in the wheat stalks 207 

" in the wheat heads 207 

" in the parts of plants collectively 208 

" not derived from the air 208 

" effects of 210 

Nitrate of ammonia, effects of. 224 

Nitrogenous manures, effects of. 353 

Nutrition of the wheat plant 176 

Organic world, general view of. 17 

Oats, history of 50 

" experiments with 211, 235 

Over luxuriance, effects of 385 

Origin of vegetable and animal kingdoms 22 

' of the wheat plant 92 

Organic manure, value of 153 

" " causes diseases in plants 355 

Osborne's experiments 139, 191 

Oxygen, properties of 164 

" discovery of. 165 

" combinations of , 167 

Plants in different geologic eras 20 

" changes in forms of 23 

" impregnation of 29 

" return to the original type 64 

" origin of cultivated ones 65 

" growing in high temperatures 127 

ho^v do they grow ? 170 



700 INDEX. 

Page. 

Plants subsist on inorganic bodies 177 

" inorganic elements in 179 

" have inherent vitality 181 

" do not obtain all their carbon from air 193 

" obtain their carbon from the soil 196 

" obtain carbon from the air, proof of 197 

¥ experiments with in inorganic soils 210 

" moisture in 238 

" germination of. 2G7 

" stoma in leaves of. 277 

" do not absorb carbon in day-time 278 

Pasture land in Ohio 309 

Plains in Stark county, Ohio 343 

Plants absorb food in proportion to root surface 375 

" warmth they receive from the sun 467 

" why some freeze so readily 471 

Parasites, vegetable 566 

Pistil in wheat (ill.) 27-28 

Pitch pine, analysis of ashes of. 178 

Pollen, importance of. 31 

Potassium, properties of. 156 

Phosphoric acid 162 

Plowing, philosophy of. 397, 398 

Plow, double 399 

Plowing, deep 400 

" " importance of 401 

" " Mapes' view of 402 

" " Tester plan of. 404 

" shallow, effects of 405 

" deep, effects of. 406 

Paw, Geo., letter from 485 

Plumule 149, 269 

«' function of. 151 

Physical progress 

Quabtz, composition of. 154 

Rice, history of. 55 

" culture of. 57 

Roots, physiology of. 143 

" functions of 114 

«' absorb moisture 183 

Ruet, prevented by early cutting 477 

" in oats, what is it ? 5G8 

" in wheat 581 to 583 

" G. D. Hendrick's letter on 590 

Rye, history of 46 

" experiments with 231 

Straw, analysis of. 11 B 

Foule's wheat, analysis of 113 



INDEX. 701 

Page. 

Sap, circulation of. *°" 

" two circulations of.... 187 

" absorption of. *89 

" produces its circulating vessels 190 

Starch, composition of. 202 

Salm Hortsmarr's experiments 210 

«« " " with white oats 211 

<« « plant flourished with nitrogen 212 

« " lime and potash necessary 212 

« « iron invigorates the plant 212 

« " manganese increases assimilation 213 

*« " soda not es or ntial 213 

" " phosphoric acid essential 214 

«« M silicic acid necessary 214 

« h chlorine of doubtful utility 214 

«« «« comparison of experiments 215 

" «' nitrogen increases assimilation 216 

«* »« experiments with seven inorganic substances 217 

«« " manganese not necessary to form fruit 218 

4 « " test experiment 219 

" " alumina, a fruit-forming substance 219 

«« " alumina, expeiiments with 220 

« «« alumina, experiments, with summary table of. 221 

'« " cause of side shoots in oats 222 

11 «« drop of water on the first leaf. 223 

" " ammonia must be in the soil before seeding 224 

" " experiments with spring barley 225 

" '• composition of artificial soil 226 

*« " experiments with winter wheat 227 

«« u composition of artificial soil 228 

" " experiment with nitrate of soda 228 

" " sodiiun, iron and manganese necessary 229 

" " results 230 

** " experiments with spring barley 230 

" " composition of artificial soil 230 

14 " experiments with winter rye 231 

M M experiments with winter rye, barren soil 232-3 

Season, effects of on crop 246 

Seeding 458 

Seed should be soaked 459 

" " " it kills Hessian flies 459 

" '* " it prevents smut 459 

" " " drilled 459 

Silica, properties of. 101 

" how deposited in plants 273 

Simmons, Hon. C. B. , letter from 484 

Spongiole 2G9, 186, 142 

Soils, origin and constituents of 153 

Sodium, properties of. 161 

Sulphuric acid, properties of. 163 

Soils change the qualities of plants ISO 



702 INDEX. 

Page. 

Solvent fluid 191 

Soil absorbs carbon 192 

Soils, why unequally fertile 208 

Scolecit, experiment with 220 

Sodium, chloride of, in forming fruit 226 

Soils of Illinois 302 

" deficiencies in Western 305 

" of Ohio 307 

Sheep essential on wheat soils 308 

Soil for wheat 330 

Soils, analyses of, not always reliable 334 

" " of, furnish no proof of fertility 336 

" forest trees indicate the quality of 337 

N classification of. 345 

" clay 346 

" sandy and lime 347 

JC marly and loamy 348 

" composition of 349 

" value of analyses in 350 

" how to test lime in 351 

" exhaustion of. 352 

** can not furnish more food than it contains 358 

" food of plants not in solution in 359 

" capacity for production 360 

" " " " how to estimate 361 

*' mineral constituents removed by wheat 362 

u exhaustion af one element exhausts all 364 

" gradual exhaustion of. 365 

" decrease in grain forming conditions 309 

" progressive exhaustion of. 373 

Smith's, Rev., svstem of wheat-growing 389 

Soil, pulverization of the 383 

" management of 389 

" best for wheat 390 

" frequent plowing necessary 391, 393 

" pores in 392 

" capillary attraction in i 394 

" Salisbury's experiment 395 

11 soluble salts on clay 396 

" must be comminuted 397 

" Dr. Madden on pulverization 419 

" mechanical relations of 420 

" lack of air and moisture in 421 

" conditions of illustrated 422 

" excess of water in 423 

M effects of di-ainage 424 

" improvement of 426 

w absorbing powers of 433, 435 

" analyses of 434 

" absorb potash from manures 438 

" absorb phosphates from manure 439 



INDEX. 703 

Page. 

Soils, all do not readily absorb 446 

M moisture in 453 

" color changes temperature 466 

Shocks, best method of making 5G3 

Summer wheat, analyses of. 114 

Sugar made of starch 136 

Sugar 202 

Smut in wheat • 572 

" in wheat 584 

" << how to prevent 587 

TiLLBfcING 271 

Tobacco plant requires saltpeter ... 179 

" experiments with • 236 

Tull's, Jethro, system of wheat-growing 380 

TJnger's theory of the vegetable kingdom 21 

Ulmin, composition of. 175 

TJlmic acid, composition of. 175 

Vegetable molds 345 

Vegetables , how to thaw, when frozen - 473 

Vine requires lime 179 

Vital force in plants 183 

Vicia sativa, experiments with 234 

Vines, why pruning is necessary 370 

Wax, composition of. 202 

Weighman's & Polstorf's experiments 233 

" " composition of artificial soil 233 

" " experiment with vetches 234 

«« «« " u barley 234 

« m " " oats 235 

«« «« " « buckwheat 235 

« «« " " tobacco 236 

" « " " red clover 236 

■ " analyses of ashes of above plants 237 

Western Beserve, adaptation of 311 

West, the, not a wheat region 325 

Wheat the symbol of civilization ~ 9 

" plant never leaves civilization 13 

" " history of. 59 

" in ancient Egypt 61 

" wild in Oregon and California 62 

■ first in Mexico 63 

" varieties of. 66 

" " change by culture 68 

" doesit change to chess? 69 

41 turning to chess, report on 73 

" and chess will not hybridize 74 

" Australian, changes in 76 



704 INDEX. 

Page. 

Wheat, structure of grain 77 

" origin of varieties., 78 

" does not hybridize in the field 79 

" importance of hybrids 85 

*« history of Mediterranean 87 

" Le Couteur's experiments with 91 

u origin of. 92 

" produced from segilops 100 

■ grain, structure and composition of. 107 

u " analysis of. 108 

*• " " Beck's 109 

" " " Emmon's 110 

" " structure of. 120 

" plant germination 126 

«' " life of in different countries 128 

" embryology of. 133 

" can grow in poison 141 

" plant, nutrition of 176 

** " requires phosphates 179 

** gluten in 199 

** winter, S Horstmarr's experiments with 227 

* spring, experiments with 230 

** Gilbert & Lawes's experiments 241 

*' nitrogen in 242 

** plant, growth of. 266 

«* " germination of. 267 

** " proper depth to plant 270 

M u tillering, process of. 271 

«• « winter killing 273 

u ■ result of drought 274 

u grains not productive without impregnation 279 

" plant, botanical description of. 280 

" head, anatomy of. 281 

" "breast," anatomy of. 282 

" glume, anatomy of. 283 

" pollen, its properties and uses 284 

" pistil, anatomy andfunction of. 285 

" plant tillers from coronal roots only 286 

** u its remarkable tillering powers 287 

" regions of the world 290 

•' regions of Europe 291 

" produced in Europe 292 

" flour imported by Britain 293 

" trade of the Elbe and France 294 

" " of Spain 295 

** «• of Odessa i 296 

« regionsof the U. S 297 

«* average crops in U. S 298 

u crops in each State 29' 

« regions of the West 300 

«« ♦« deterioration of. «• Ml 



INDEX. 705 

Page. 

Wheat regions of Illinois 302 

» soils of Illinois 303 

" section of U. S 30G 

" soil of Ohio 307 

" acres of, sown in Obio from 1850 to 1857 312 

" bushels gathered in Ohio from 1850 to 1S57 316 

" loss by insects in Ohio 320 

" district in Ohio changing 321 

" " diminution*of 323 

" average product of in Ohio 324 

" region, Ohio the center of 327 

" amount exported 329 

" culture of 330 

" soils, Scotch method of determining..., ." 344 

" after clover 354 

" amount of mineral matter removed in an acre 362 

" to precede potatoes 371 

" rotation with clover and potatoes 372 

" how to grow with profit 381 

" crop, manuring 440 

" for seed should be soaked 450 

" bearded most liable to freeze 470 

" when to harvest it 475 

u advantages of earlv cutting 47t> 

" description and classification of varieties 479 

" transmutation of species 481 

" color no basis of classification +87 

" Metzger's classification of 488 

" common varieties of 488 

" turgid varieties of 489 

" hard varieties of 489 

" Polish 489 

" Speltz 400 

" Euimei or A me 1 coin 491 

" St. Peters coin 491 

" in New York, Emmon's classification 462 

" spring varieties in Xew York 494 

" additional varieties in New York... 495 

M British varieties 49li 

*' " Lawson's classification 497 

" " description of 498 to 511 

" varieties in Ohio 512 

" " bearded winter, red 512 to 525 

V " smooth winter, red 525 to 533 

" " bearded winter, white 533 to 537 

" " smooth winter, white 537 to 551 

" M spring 551 to 553 

" diseases and enemies of 557 

" " atmospheric 559 

" degeneration of 5«j5 

•• vegetable parasites of 557 






706 INDEX/ 

Page 

Wheat, insect parasites of 592 

Winter wheat, analysis of 11G 

White Hint wheat, analysis of 118 

Wheatland red wheat, analysis of 118 

White oats, experiments with 211 

Woodlaud in Ohio 309 

Yester deep land culture 404 

" " " " effects of. ! 40G 

" " " " effects of ruuckiug 409 

" " " " effects ou crops 410 

" " " " effects on hay crop 414 

" system saves lahor 415 






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